V 341. Mountainous Crimea (?).Epitaph of David, XIV–XVth century C.E.
Monument
Type
Material
Limestone.
Dimensions (cm)
H.41.0, W.13.5, Th.59.0.
Additional description
Single-'horned' double-sloped tombstone; at the top of the front - relief Maltese cross with three-pronged ends inside a circle; a ledge at the bottom; on the left side under the 'horn' - relief rosette with a cross in the centre; bottom parts of all sides are crudely worked. The surface is chipped.
Place of Origin
Mountainous Crimea (?).
Find place
Unknown.
Find context
Unknown.
Find circumstances
Unknown.
Modern location
Bakhchisaray, Crimea.
Institution and inventory
Bakhchisaray State Historical and Cultural Preserve, no inventory number.
Autopsy
August 2013.
Epigraphic field
Position
Under the cross, within the central area, bordered on right by a zigzag ornament; between relief guiding lines.
Lettering
Lapidary. Alpha with broken crossbar. Ligature nu-eta-nu.
Letterheights (cm)
2.0.
Text
Category
Epitaph.
Date
XIV–XVth century C.E.
Dating criteria
Decoration.
Editions
Unpublished.
<div type="edition" xml:lang="grc">
<ab>
<lb n="1"/>Δαβὴ<unclear>τ</unclear>
<lb n="2"/>Γιαν<unclear>ά</unclear><lb n="3" break="no"/>κι, ν<unclear>ηνὶ</unclear>
<lb n="4"/><date><rs type="month" ref="oct">Ὀγδ<unclear>οβ</unclear><lb n="5" break="no"/>ρ<unclear>ίου</unclear></rs> <num value="10"><unclear>ι</unclear></num></date>.
</ab>
</div>Translation
David, son of Gianakis, 10 (?) of October.
Commentary
1. The name David is not otherwise attested in the inscriptions of Crimea. Final obstruent-devoicing (d-t) in the name David is known in the languages of the Caucasus.
2-3. On the name Gianakis, cf. V 144 (Laki, 1364 C.E.).
3-5. The stone-cutter must have followed an aural instruction, not a written draft, as can be seen from the form νηνὶ used instead of μηνὶ and Ὀγδοβρίου, influenced by the pronunciation of the numeral.
The date of the month was followed by the day of the week.
The physical shape of the monument and its current resting place suggest that the tombstone originates from one of rural cemeteries of Mountainous Crimea. Its small size might indicate a child's burial. The only strange aberration is the alpha with broken crossbar, but it might be due to the imitation of old monuments.
Images
© 2015 Andrey Vinogradov (edition), Irene Polinskaya (translation)
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