E02664: Floor-mosaics with Greek inscriptions from the sanctuary (hagios topos) of *Lot (Old Testament patriarch, S01234) commemorating the restorations of mosaic pavements in 572/573, 605 or 607, and 692. Found at Deir 'Ain 'Abata near Zoara/modern Ghor es-Safi on the southeast shore of the Dead Sea (Jordan/Roman province of Palaestina III).
Creators: name: Pnowakowski
Publisher: name: University of Oxford
Year: 2017
Subjects: History

description: Inscription 1: <br><br>Medallion encircled by a vine scroll springing from 'a large urn'. Diameter 1.11 m. Letter height 0.05-0.10 m. Letters: black and red tesserae, white-yellowish background. Set in the floor of the narthex. Text A is within the medallion, while Text B, the name of a mosaicist, is on the band on the shoulder of the vase.<br><br>Text A is very poorly preserved, it was reassembled from scattered mosaic fragments. <br><br>Other medallions in the carpet mosaic of that room are decorated with animals (lions, birds, and dogs), and floral scenes. <br><br>A:<br><br>+ ̣ἐπὶ το̣ῦ<br>ἁγι̣ω̣τ̣ά̣τ̣ῳ<br>Πέτ̣ρ̣ο[υ] ̣ἐ̣πι̣σ̣κ(όπου)<br>κ(αὶ) Ε[ὐ]ζοΐου ἑγουμένου<br>̣κα̣ὶ ̣Ἰ̣ωάννου<br>ἐπ̣ιτ[ρ]όπου κ(αὶ) ̣Γεοργί(ου)<br>οἰκωνόμ̣ο[υ], ̣ἔτ̣ι υξζ΄<br>ἀνενεόθη, ̣τ[ῇ σπου]̣δ[ῇ]<br>Ἰωάνν(ου), Θε̣ο̣δ̣ό̣ρ(ου),<br>Ἰωάνν(ου), μο̣ν(αχῶν)<br><br>B: + Κοσμᾶς ψεφωθ(έτης)<br><br>'Under the most holy bishop Petros, and the abbot (higoumenos) Euzoios, and the administrator (epitropos) Ioannes, and the steward (oikonomos) Georgios (this mosaic pavement) was restored in the year 467, [through the zeal] of the monks Ioannes, Theodoros (and) Ioannes'<br><br>'+ Kosmas the mosaicist.'<br><br>Text: Politis 2012, 393-400, no. 1 [ed. and translation Y. Meimaris &amp; K.I. Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou, adapted].<br><br>Dating: the date, computed according to the era of the province of Arabia, corresponds to AD 572/573. The date corresponds to one of the presumed dates of the construction of a church dedicated to Saint Lot at Khirbat al-Mukhayyat near Mount Nebo (E02557). <br><br>Inscription 2:<br><br>A mosaic panel showing an encircled cross bearing the inscription τέλος καλόν/'Good End' (= '(May the) end (to life be) good') below a depiction of a chalice. Diameter 0.67 m. Letter height 0.06-0.08 m. Letters: black tesserae. Set in the floor of the choir, in the middle of a mosaic showing birds, a lamb and a peacock, surrounded by vine scrolls, probably close to or below the altar.<br><br>The inscription belongs to the same layer as Inscription 1 and therefore dates to 572/573.<br><br>Text: Politis 2012, 400-401, no. 3 [ed. and translation Y. Meimaris &amp; K.I. Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou.<br><br>Inscription 3: <br><br>An inscription of two lines, without any frame, was found on three conjoining fragments of the mosaic pavement close to Inscription 1, but its original location is not identified. The text is accompanied by floral motifs. Letter height 0.055-0.06 m. <br><br>οἱπρ σωτ[ηρίας]<br>Γεργίου<br><br>1. possibly σωτ[ηρίας] Meimaris &amp; Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou || 2. possibly: Σεργίου Meimaris &amp; Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou<br><br>'As a vow for the salvation of Georgios.'<br><br>Text: Politis 2012, 400, no. 2 [ed. and translation Y. Meimaris &amp; K.I. Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou, adapted]. <br><br>Inscription 4:<br><br>Mosaic panel framed by a tabula ansata. Dimensions: H. 0.67 m; W. 2.325 m; letter height 0.10-0.12 m. Letters: black tesserae. Yellowish white background. Set in the floor at the east end of the north aisle, in front of the doorway of the holy cave behind the apse. The carpet mosaic of this aisle is the highest in quality in the church.<br><br>ἐπὶ τοῦ ἁγιωτ(άτου) πατρὸς ἡ-<br>μῶν Ἰακόβου τοῦ ἐπισκ(όπου) κ(αὶ) Σοζω-<br>μενοῦ ἡγουμένου ἐγένετο ἡ ψή-<br>φωσ(ις). μη(νὶ) Απριλ(ίῳ), ἰ(ν)δ(ικτιῶνι) ι΄, ἔτους φ΄ <br><br>'Under our most holy father, bishop Iakobos, and the abbot (higoumenos) Sozomenos was completed this mosaic. In the month of April, the 10th indiction, the year 500'.<br><br>Dating: the era year and the indiction year do not correspond to each other. The editors suggest that one of these dates must be corrected. Thus the pavement was laid either in April of the 500th year of the era of the province of Arabia and &lt;8&gt;th indiction (= April AD 605) or in April of the 50&lt;2&gt;nd year of that era, in the 10th indiction (= April AD 607).<br><br>Meimaris and Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou note that the date falls in the episcopacy of the patriarch of Jerusalem Isaakios (601-609), who received a significant donation from the emperor Phokas for building and restoring churches and monasteries in Palestine. It is possible that the monastery at Deir 'Ain 'Abata benefited from this donation.<br><br>Text: Politis 2012, 401-402, no. 4 [ed. Y. Meimaris &amp; K.I. Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou].<br><br>Inscription 5: <br><br>Two inscriptions set in the floor of the nave, in front of the chancel screen, next to each other. Text A is within a framed rectangular mosaic panel (H. 0.60 m; W. 1.80 m; letter height 0.065-0.095 m). Text B is positioned to the left of it and runs vertically. Letters of black tesserae in both texts.<br><br>A:<br><br>+ ἐπὶ τοῦ θεοφιλ(εσ)τ(άτου) Χρηστοφ̣όρου πρ(εσβυ)τ(έρου)<br>(καὶ) χοριεπ(ισ)κ(όπου) (καὶ) Ζήνονος π̣ρ(εσβυτέρου) [(καὶ)] ̣ο̣ἰκονό-<br>μῳ κ̣αὶ Ἰωάννου Ραβίβ[ου πρ(εσβυτέρου) (?)] καὶ δι-<br>οικητοῦ, ἐγένετο τὸ ἔργον τοῦτο τῆς <br>ψηφόσ̣ε̣ως τῆς βασιλικῆς τοῦ ἁγί(ου) τόπου<br>ἐν μ(η)ν(ὶ) Ξαν̣θ̣ι̣κ̣õ, ἰνδ(ικτιῶνος) ε΄, τ(οῦ) φπς΄· (καὶ) Γεοργ(ίου) κανδιλάπ(του)<br><br>B:<br>+ Ἰωάπες Σαβνηάου<br><br>'+ Under the most God-fearing presbyter and country bishop (chorepiskopos) Christophoros, and Zenon, the presbyter and steward (oikonomos), and Ioannes, son of Rabibos, [the presbyter (?)] and administrator (dioiketes), this work of the mosaic pavement of the basilica of the holy place was made in the month of Xanthikos, in the 5th indiction, in the year 586, and in the time of Georgios the candle lighter (kandelaptes).'<br><br>'Ioapes, son of Sabneaos.'<br><br>Text: Politis 2012, 403-409, no. 5 [ed. and translation Y. Meimaris &amp; K.I. Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou, adapted].<br><br>Dating: the 586th year of the era of the province of Arabia does not coincide with the 5th indiction. Therefore, Meimaris and Nikolaropoulou corrected the era year to 587, which allows one to convert the date to 22nd March-20 April AD 692. The error is probably due to the fact that the author of the inscription did not notice that the month of Xanthikos (March/April) was the first month of the Graeco-Roman calendar used in the region.