Classical

Cypriot Syllabic Tablet

Terracotta tablet with incised characters in the Cypriot Syllabic script, possibly a religious text or else a commercial or administrative document; flat body, originally rectangular with rounded corners but now broken diagonally; pierced with two holes at the top, probably for suspension. The Cypriot Syllabic characters are arranged regularly in lines, twelve on one face (side A) and eight on another (side B), written sinistroverse from right to left; the text breaks off on the left side of the text; some of the surviving letters are also damaged. Dimensions: Height: 16.51 centimetres Object Type: tablet Techniques: incised Inscription: Inscription type: inscription Inscription language: Ancient Greek Inscription script: Cypriot Syllabic Inscription note: Despite the legibility of the surviving signs, the text is difficult to interpret because of its fragmentary nature and lack of an archaeological context. At a minimum the text contains lists of people and months of the year. Mitford's reconstruction of the text, though generally accepted by Masson, is by no means certain in every detail (Mitford 1961, 38-45; Masson 1983, 402-3, 418). The broader historical conclusions drawn by the former, including the suggestion that the tablet was found at Chytroi, are conjectural, if not groundless. Later commentaries (notably Hatzopoulos 2009) that follow Mitford's version of the text are also problematic because of the obscurity of the original document. Bibliography: Hatzopoulos M. 2009, 'Chypre, de la multiplicité des royaumes à l'unité de la province lagide', CCEC 39, 227-34. Masson O. 1961/1983, Les inscriptions chypriotes syllabiques, Paris. Mitford T. 1961, Studies in the signaries of south-western Cyprus. BICS Supplement 10, London.