An ostracon ( Greek: όστρακον ostrakon , plural όστρακα ostraka) is a piece of pottery (or stone), usually broken off from avase or other earthenware vessel. In archaeology, ostraca maycontain scratched-in words or other forms of writing which maygive clues as to the time when the piece was in use. The word isderived from Greek ostrakon , meaning a shell or a shard ofpottery used as a voting ballot. It is a common error for the pluralform ostraca to be used as the singular for ostracon .
In Ancient Greece, the voting public would write or scratch thename of a person in the shard of pottery. When the decision athand was to banish or exile a certain member of society, citizenpeers would cast their vote by writing the name of the person onthe piece of pottery; the vote was counted and if unfavorable theperson was put out of the city, thus giving rise to the termostracism.
Egyptian limestone and potsherd ostraca
In Egypt, anything with a smooth surface could be used as awriting surface. Generally discarded material, ostraca were cheap,readily available and therefore frequently used for writings of anephemeral nature such as messages, receipts, students exercisesand notes: pottery shards, limestone flakes, thin fragments ofother stone types, etc., but limestone sherds, being flaky and of alighter color, were most common. Ostraca were typically small,covered with just a few words or a small picture drawn in ink; butthe tomb of the craftsman Sennedjem at Deir el Medina containedan enormous ostracon inscribed with the Story of Sinuhe.
The importance of ostraca for Egyptology is immense. Thecombination of their physical nature and the Egyptian climate havepreserved texts which in other cultures were lost, texts of amundane nature, which are often better witnesses of everyday lifethan literary treatises preserved in libraries.
Saqqara Dream Ostraca
From 1964-1971, Bryan Emery excavated at Saqqara in search ofImhotep's tomb; instead, the extensive catacombs of animalmummies were uncovered. Apparently it was a pilgrim site, with asmany as 1-1/2 million ibis birds interred (as well as cats, dogs,rams, and lions). This 2nd-century BC site contained extensivepottery debris from the site offerings of the pilgrims.
Emery's excavations uncovered the "Dream Ostraca", created by ascribe named Hor of Sebennytos. A convert to the god Thoth, helived adjacent to Thoth's sanctuary at the entrance to the NorthCatacomb and worked as a "proto-therapist", advising andcomforting clients. He transferred his divinely-inspired dreams ontoostraca. The Dream Ostraca are 65 Demotic texts written onpottery and limestone.
Biblical period ostraca
Famous ostraca for Biblical archaeology have been found at:
Additionally, the lots drawn at Masada are believed to have beenostraca, and some potsherds resembling the lots have been found.
New Testament ostraca
Some Christian texts are preserved upon ostraca. In the late 19thcentury, 20 ostraca were found in Upper Egypt , probably from the7th century, written in Greek and Coptic.
The ostraca are of different sizes and shapes. The more extant isLuke 22:40-71, which runs over 10 pieces. The ostraca containfrom 2 to 9 verses each, and cover ; Mark 5:40-41 (Mark 9:3);Mark 9:17-18, Mark 9:22; Mark 15:21; Luke 12:13-16; Luke22:40-71; John 1:1-9; John 1:14-17; John 18:19-25; John 19:15-17. There is one ostracon with the inscription "St. Peter theevangelist," perhaps an allusion to the Gospel of Peter.
A Coptic Sa'idic ostracon preserves the Pericope Adulterae foundin John 7:53-8:1, which is otherwise omitted in the Sa'idic NewTestament. A Christian hymn to Mary, similar to the canticles ofLuke, and some Christian letters have also been found.
Christian ostraka
Inscriptions on clay, wood, metal, and other hard materials, likepapyri, are valuable especially as the literary sources for earlyChristianity. They are found chiefly in Oriental countries, especiallyEgypt. The greatest number are pieces of clay or scraps of potsinscribed with colors or ink. The oldest Christian ostraka, like thepapyri, are Greek and date from the fifth century; next come theCoptic and Arabian ostraka. Some of the texts not yet decipheredinclude several Nubian ostraka in a language spoken in the oldChristian negro-kingdoms in the vicinity of Aloa on the Blue Nile. Inthese inscriptions Greek letters are used, with some other signs.As to contents, ostraka are either profane or ecclesiastical.Potsherds were often used for correspondence in place of the lessdurable papyrus; occasionally the recipient wrote the answer onthe back of the potsherd. Ostraka were also used for mercantilepurposes, as bills, receipts, etc. C. M. Kaufmann and J. C. EwaldFalls, while excavating the town of Menas in the Libyan desert,discovered ostraka of this class—the oldest Christian potsherds inthe Greek language (fifth century)—and H. J. Bell and F. G.Kenyon of the British Museum deciphered them. They refer to thevine-culture of the sanctuaries of Menas and represent, for themost part, short vouchers for money or provisions. The currency isbased upon gold solidi issued by Constantine; the date is reckonedby the year of indiction. Of historical interest is the assistancegiven to invalid workmen, the employment of the lower clergy, themanner of provisioning the workmen, and especially thestatements about the harvest periods in the Libyan district. Theseries of Coptic ostraka which deals with the clergy and themonasteries in the Nile valley is particularly extensive. They referto all phases of administration and popular life.
The ecclesiastical ostraka, in a narrow sense, contain Biblicalcitations from the New Testament, prayers, extracts from thesynaxaria (lives of the saints), and are partly of a liturgiccharacter. Greek, which was then the language of the Church, ismuch used, with the Coptic. Among the samples published by W.E.Crum, a fine judge of Coptic dialects, there is a local confession offaith from the sixth century, besides the Preface and Sanctus ofthe Mass, prayers from the Liturgy of St. Basil and of St. Mark, apart of the didascalia of Schenûte of Athribis, a Greek confession,and an excommunication, also in Greek. Particularly remarkable arethose ostraka which contain liturgical songs. They represent ourpresent song-books for which purpose rolls of papyrus were lesssuited than the more durable potsherds; in some cases woodenbooks were used. Among the pieces translated by Crum we findpetitions for ordination in which the petitioner promises to learn byheart one of the Gospels, and a reference to an ancientabstinence movement, against which is directed a decree that theconsecration-wine should be pure or at least three-fourths pure.
See also
References
Sources
- Parkinson, Richard. Cracking Codes, the Rosetta Stone, andDecipherment , Richard Parkinson, with W. Diffie, M. Fischer,and R.S. Simpson, (University of California Press), c. 1999.
- Reeves, Nicholas. Ancient Egypt, The Great Discoveries, AYear-by-Year Chronicle , Nicholas Reeves, (Thames andHudson, London), c 2000. (Specifically, "1964-71: The SacredAnimal Necropolis, Saqqara"; and "1964-65: A Statue Finds ItsFace".)
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