A new Ancient North Arabian inscription with a reference to the Nabataean king Aretas (original) (raw)
2011, Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy
The text under consideration was found in 2010 by Mr Moḥammad al-Jāzī in the region of al-Ḥussayniah, north of Maʿān, in southern Jordan. While Mr al-Jāzī kindly provided a photograph of the inscription, the author was unable to relocate the inscription in situ, so that at present both the precise location of the inscription and its measurements remain unknown. Due to the importance of this text, however, the author presents here the original photograph that provides a clear and certain reading. The text is neither 'pure' Safaitic nor 'pure' Thamudic E/Ḥismaic, but is what has been called a 'mixed' text with letter forms from both scripts. Thus, the ḏāl and the thāʾ are Ḥismaic but the ḥāʾ is Safaitic (on 'mixed texts' see Macdonald 1980: 180). The area where this inscription was found lies between the heartlands of the Safaitic and Ḥismaic inscriptions and is thus exactly where one would expect to find 'mixed texts' of this sort. Before we proceed, it is useful to discuss some of the archaeological discoveries from the region of al-Ḥussayniah (Fig. 1). A recent survey and salvage excavation conducted approximately 30 km southeast of the village of al-Ḥussayniah identified five burials that likely date between the second and fourth centuries AD (al-Salameen & Falahat 2009). In addition, the survey and excavation confirmed that the region lacked a permanent human settlement during this time, indicating that the burials likely belonged to seasonal nomads. About 4 km west of al-Ḥussayniah is the Roman fort at Daʿjaniya. This castellum is one of the Roman forts built along the desert caravan road east of the Via Nova Traiana. 1 The absence of a permanent settlement indicates the largely nomadic character of the region's inhabitants during the first four centuries AD. The text (Figs 2 & 3) TRANSLITERATION l ʿqrb bn msk ḏʾl ʿmrt wḥll snt mt ḥrṯt hmlk TRANSLATION By ʿAqrab son of Māsik from the tribe of ʿAmrat and he encamped, the year Ḥarithat the king died. Commentary The text is clearly engraved and there is no difficulty in distinguishing its letters. It was dedicated by ʿAqrab son of Māsik. The name ʿqrb is related to the Arabic word ʿAqrab, which means 'scorpion'. It is attested frequently in
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