Tre qirinj Greke njeri Deborah ne Diber, tjetri Deborah ne Pisidia i fundit Debora ne Phrygia

Описание: Andi Zeneli
Debbora, Dibra, Dhivra ‘bee’ in Syrian language
[ ]Phryg. — Apollonia (Uluborlu) — 1st-2nd c. AD
See also:
• SEG 30:1507/1903
1  [κλεινῆς]
[Ἀ]ντιόχισσα
πάτρης γονέ-
ων πολυτείμων̣ |
5 οὔ̣νομα̣ Δεββῶ-
ρα ἀνδρὶ δοθεῖ-
σα κλυτῷ |
Παμφύλῳ Σ[ι]-
λυεῖ̣ φιλοτ[έ]-
10 κνῳ [Φρυ]-
[γ]ίῃ τ’
ἐϋμήλ[ῳ] |
παρθενι[κῶν]
λέκτρων ἀ̣[ν]-
15 τιλαβοῦσα̣
χάριν. | 


This is a beautiful and poignant funerary inscription. Here is a translation and a detailed breakdown.
English Translation
...of the glorious
Antiochian
homeland and of my
most-honoured parents,
Debbora is my name.
Given to a husband, the renowned
Pamphylos, a Silyean,
a lover of his children,
and to Phrygia
of the fine flocks,
in return for the grace
of my maidenly
marriage-bed.
________________________________________

• MAMA IV 202
1 [κλεινῆς]
Ἀντιόχισσα
πάτρης γονέ-
ων πολυτείμων, /
5 ὔνομα Δεββώ-
ρα, ἀνδρὶ δοθε[ῖ]-
σα κλυτῷ /
Παμφύλῳ κ̣[εῖ]-
μ̣ε [φ]ι̣λοτέ-
10 κνῳ
[ξε]ῖν̣ε̣ [ἐνὶ]
τ̣ύμβ̣ῳ,
παρθενι[κῶν]
λέκτρων [ἀν]-
15 τιλαβοῦσ[α]
χαριν.


This is a fascinating variant of the previous inscription. The core meaning is the same, but the structure and some key phrases are different, giving it a distinct feel.
English Translation
...of the glorious
Antiochian
homeland and of my
most-honoured parents,
Debbora is my name,
given to a husband, the renowned
Pamphylos.
I, a lover of my children, lie here.
O stranger, upon the tomb,
in return for the grace
of my maidenly
marriage-bed.
________________________________________
Detailed Breakdown and Commentary
This version is also a first-person epitaph for Debbora but is structured more like a direct address from the tomb to a passerby.
• Line 1-5: [κλεινῆς] Ἀντιόχισσα πάτρης γονέων πολυτείμων, ὔνομα Δεββώρα
o This section is identical to the previous one: "of the glorious Antiochian homeland and of my most-honoured parents, Debbora is my name."
• Line 5-8: ἀνδρὶ δοθε[ῖ]σα κλυτῷ Παμφύλῳ
o "given to a husband, the renowned Pamphylos."
o This is the same as before, establishing her marital status.
• Line 8-10: κ̣[εῖ]μ̣ε [φ]ι̣λοτέκνῳ
o κείμε: "I lie" or "I am laid". This is a very common verb on tombstones, directly stating the fact of death.
o φιλοτέκνῳ: "a lover of my children".
o Crucial Difference: In the previous inscription, φιλοτέκνῳ ("child-loving") was an adjective describing her husband. Here, it describes Debbora herself. This is a significant shift, highlighting her own maternal role and virtue.
• Line 10-12: [ξε]ῖν̣ε̣ [ἐνὶ] τ̣ύμβ̣ῳ
o ξείνε: "O stranger!" or "O passerby!" This is a classic poetic device in Greek epitaphs, directly engaging the reader.
o ἐνὶ τύμβῳ: "upon the tomb".
o Meaning: This phrase is entirely new and changes the tone. The stone now speaks to anyone who walks by, a common feature of Hellenistic and Roman funerary poetry that is absent from the first version.
• Line 12-16: παρθενικῶν λέκτρων [ἀν]τιλαβοῦσ[α] χαριν
o This is the same as the final lines of the first inscription: "in return for the grace of my maidenly marriage-bed."
o However, its impact is now framed by the preceding "O stranger!" It becomes the moral or the lesson that the passerby is meant to learn from her life and death.
Overall Interpretation & Comparison to the First Inscription
This version tells the same basic story but with a different emphasis:
• First Inscription: Focuses on her transition and integration: from her homeland to her husband and to the new land of Phrygia. It's a story of a life fully given.
• This Inscription (MAMA IV 202): Focuses on her death and legacy. The direct speech ("I lie here", "O stranger!") makes it more immediate and dramatic. It is a public declaration from the tomb itself.
The change of φιλοτέκνῳ from her husband to herself is profound. It re-centers the epitaph on her virtue as a mother, rather than just her husband's character. Combined with the address to the stranger, it creates a powerful image: a virtuous mother and wife speaks from the grave, asking the living to remember that her life was given in fulfillment of her marital duty.
In essence, the first is a biographical record, while this one is a dramatic, first-person monument.