Dedication to Asklepios (and others?)

Bibliography

Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography , whence SEG Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum, Leiden, then Amsterdam, 1923-1971, then 1979- - see in bibliography , 62.1789.

Text

Apparatus

a.5 Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  δίς σοι : δίσσοι (also possible) || πολυΐ[χθυϊ πόντωι] : (or) πολυΐ[χθυϊ κύματι] : Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  πολυ[---] 

a.8 [Κ]ορωνὶς : Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  [Κο]ρωνὶς

a.9 γ' ἐ 'φ' ἵ' ancient correction from: ιπ π 'πο' ancient correction from: νε ν ἐμὴ[ν ---]  : Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  ΓΕΠΙΠΜΟΝΕΜΗ

a.11 τήκων̣ : Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  τήκω[---] 

13 [ἀνέθ]ηκαν κι : Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  [---] ΗΚΛΩΚΙ || κι[νδυν?---]  : Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  κι[---] 

b.7 [Ἑλλά?]δος : Dobias-Lalou, 2012 Dobias-Lalou, C., 2012, Prendre la mer et se confier aux dieux: une nouvelle épigramme grecque du port de Cyrène, in J.Chr. Couvenhes et alii (éd.); L'hellénisme, d'une rive à l'autre de la Méditerranée. Mélanges offerts à André Laronde, Paris, 225-238 - see in bibliography  [---] δος

French translation

a)  [---]  pesante  [---]  a grondé; et les  [---]  à travers la mer de Libye  [---] ; et des étrangers aux nombreux  [---]  deux fois ils ont voulu te  [---]  dans la [mer] peuplée de [poissons]  [---]  aborder chez les dieux qui  [---] ; dieu, que Korônis enfanta secourable aux mortels sur terre et sur mer,  [---] , quant à cela, sur ma cavale,  [---] ; elles (sont)  [---]  de stature, seigneur, celles-là;  [---]  et dissolvant le châtiment  [---]  tu viendras en auxiliaire de notre traversée  [---]  [ ont dé]dié  [---]  aux dangers  [---] .

b)  [---]  de la Grèce  [---] .

English translation

 [---]  heavy  [---]  roared; and the  [---]  through the Libyan sea  [---] ; and foreigners with many  [---]  twice they wanted to you  [---]  in the [sea] with many [fishes]  [---]  to land at the gods' place who  [---] ; oh god, whom Koronis brought forth helpful for the mortals on land and sea,  [---] , as to this, upon my mare,  [---] ; they (are)  [---]  in stature, lord, those;  [---]  and dissolving the retribution  [---]  you will come as auxiliary of our sailing  [---]  [dedi]cated  [---]  the dangers  [---] .

b)  [---]  of Greece  [---] .

Italian translation

a) [---]  pesante  [---]  mugghiò; e i  [---]  attraverso il mare della Libia  [---] ; e stranieri con molti  [---]  due volte vollero per te  [---]  nel [mare] dai molti [pesci]  [---]  per approdare presso gli dèi che  [---] ; dio, soccorso per i mortali sulla terra e per mare, che Koronis generò,  [---] , quanto a questo, sulla mia cavalla,  [---] ; (sono)  [---]  per statura, o signore, quelle;  [---]  e sciogliendo la pena  [---]  tu verrai in aiuto alla nostra navigazione  [---]  [hanno dedi]cato  [---]  i pericoli  [---] .

b)  [---]  dell'Ellade  [---] .

Commentary

If the vertical strip at the back was intended for fixing the stone, it can be guessed from its plausible shape that the whole panel was about 0.31 wide and thus that at least one half of each line is lost. The rhythm is clearly dactylic, but no text line on fragment a may be the beginning of a verse line. Such a layout does not help to restore the lost parts.

At line 1, the adjective 'heavy' may be at any feminine case, so we leave it open.

At lines 7-8, with restorations that seem cautious enough, the son of the nymph Koronis, i.e. Asklepios, is mentioned as a saviour of humans on earth and sea. The latter role is surprising and may be related to the fact that the poem was exposed in the harbour of the city. In fact, dangers related to sailing are stressed in the preceding verses, with the mention of the Libyan sea, of the loudly roaring sea, of foreigners and of someone landing.

The stone was found in an area where multiple saviour gods were worshipped, which might explain the phrase 'landing at the gods' place'.

At l. 11, the letters are easily read, but their interpretation offers some difficulties. An ending -ταο occurs in epic language for the genitive of masculine nouns of the 1st declination. In τισιν, the first syllable should be metrically long. The dative plural of the indefinite pronoun being excluded, the accusative of the noun τίσις is more acceptable, the original short syllable being taken as long, either through a metrical lengthening and/or by confusion with τίνω, which has a long both in epic language and in the dialect. Even if so, the exact meaning of the phrase τίσιν τήκων is rather odd.

At l. 12, the god is called for help also by boarding people who implored his help for sailing. This recalls the dedication to Apollo Soter in IGCyr064100 by thearoi travelling to Delphi, which was also found in the Port of Cyrene. Here one traveller seems bound to take part into games with a horse (l. 9) but the dedicants of the ex-voto are multiple (l. 14).

Metrical analysis: many short dactylic segments are preserved and lines 7-8 have a full hexameter preceded by a segment that cannot belong to a pentameter. The whole poem was thus probably made of hexameters only. At line 6 it is necessary to take θεούς as one syllable, a synizesis that is not uncommon in epic poetry and later.

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