A Jewish Aramaic Circus Curse Tablet from Antioch
In this contribution we publish a lead circus curse tablet written in Jewish Palestinian Aramaic (Princeton Art Museum excavation no. 3608-I57). The tablet was found in 1935 during excavations near the first turning-post at the hippodrome of Antioch on the Orontes (modern-day Antakya, Turkey). The u...
| Authors: | ; |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2023
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| In: |
Aramaic studies
Year: 2023, Volume: 21, Issue: 1, Pages: 64-111 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Circus
/ Aramaic language
/ Antiochien
/ Greek language
/ Latin
/ Curse
/ History
/ History 400-600
/ Chariot force
|
| IxTheo Classification: | BH Judaism |
| Further subjects: | B
Jewish Palestinian Aramaic
B chariot races B curse tablet B Incantation B Antioch |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | In this contribution we publish a lead circus curse tablet written in Jewish Palestinian Aramaic (Princeton Art Museum excavation no. 3608-I57). The tablet was found in 1935 during excavations near the first turning-post at the hippodrome of Antioch on the Orontes (modern-day Antakya, Turkey). The use of Greek and Latin defixiones agonisticae (agonistic binding spells) in chariot races was a wide-spread phenomenon during the Roman Byzantine Period. Curse tablets were inscribed with aggressive incantations that aimed at the defeat of rivals in the chariot races. The tablet under discussion is a unique piece: It is the only known lead circus curse tablet that was written in a Jewish language and script. The tablet is datable to the fifth or sixth century CE. |
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| ISSN: | 1745-5227 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Aramaic studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/17455227-bja10041 |