Demotic private letter concerning water jars and work with donkeys from Oxyrhynchus — OD Pisa 2

Text A — Convex side

1. Pꜣ-tj-sn sꜣ ʿw ir sm r Pa-Wsir
2. sꜣ Ḫns ipj nꜣ-ʿn-f
3. e-k ir-f mtw-k tj ššw mw 2
4. n ʾmnjš (sꜣ) Ḥrllw
5. ḥpr e-f gm-w r ḥr-n
6. mtw-k nw r pꜣ ššw mw
7. 2 r tj n-k Ḥr pꜣ rts
8. (sꜣ) Ḥrllw mtw-k tj s
9. n ʾmnjš

Text B — Concave side

10. e-j ij r bnr
11. n rstj e-j
12. n nꜣ ʿꜥw n Pa-Imn
13. ḥr mw
14. sh ḥꜣ.t-sp 31 III-prt sw 12

Convex side

1. Petesnes, son of Au, greets Paosiris,
2. son of Khonsis. You would do a good deed
3. if you gave two water jars
4. to Ammonios, son of Khalelos (?).
5. It has happened that we have agreed
6. that you should see the two water jars,
7. the two which Horos the Rhodian
8. son of Khalelos (?) gave you, and that you give them
9. to Ammonios.

Concave side

10. If I go out
11. tomorrow, I shall be assigned
12. to the donkeys of Paamunis
13. with the water.
14. Written in year 31, month Phamenoth, day 12.

Maximum preserved dimensions: approximately 10 × 3 cm.

Archaeological and functional context

OD Pisa 2 is a small Demotic ostrakon preserving the text of a private letter. Unlike monumental inscriptions, official decrees or formal contracts, this document belongs to the sphere of everyday communication. It records a short practical message concerning the transfer of two water jars and the sender’s probable work assignment for the following day. Its importance lies precisely in this ordinary character: the ostrakon provides direct evidence for small-scale logistical coordination, personal networks and daily labour in Ptolemaic Oxyrhynchus.

The letter was sent by a man named Petesnes, son of Au, to Paosiris, son of Khonsis. Bresciani suggests that Paosiris, the recipient, may have placed the letter among the other ostraka of an archive. This does not necessarily imply an institutional archive in the strict sense, but it does indicate that such written notes could be preserved as part of a practical dossier of communications, obligations or transactions.

The content concerns the delivery of two water jars to Ammonios, son of Khalelos (?). These jars had apparently been given to Paosiris by Horos “the Rhodian”, son of Khalelos (?). The final section adds a more personal or practical note: if the sender goes out the following day, he will be assigned to the donkeys of Paamunis “with the water”. The letter therefore brings together three closely related elements: containers, water and animal transport.

Material description, condition and visible composition

The ostrakon is a narrow ceramic sherd, with a maximum size of about 10 × 3 cm. It was written on both sides. The letter begins on the convex side, described by Bresciani as light red in colour, and continues on the concave side, which is a deeper red and preserves visible wheel-marks from the vessel’s manufacture.

The use of both sides is significant. The convex side contains the main body of the message: greeting, request, identification of the jars and instructions for delivery. The concave side contains the continuation and conclusion: the sender’s possible work assignment and the date. This layout reflects the practical use of available space on a reused potsherd. The writing is described as generally legible, with the ink only slightly faded in a few points on the convex side.

The inscription: reading, language and chronological meaning

The text is written in Demotic Egyptian and follows the conventions of private epistolary communication. The opening formula identifies both sender and recipient through patronymics: Petesnes son of Au greets Paosiris son of Khonsis. This type of formula belongs to the standard Demotic letter tradition, but the document also preserves expressions of particular linguistic interest.

Bresciani emphasizes that line 5 contains an epistolary expression for which she did not know an exact parallel. The phrase may be understood approximately as “it has happened that we have agreed” or “we have found it appropriate”, introducing the practical instruction that follows. This is especially important because private letters often preserve idiomatic and colloquial turns of phrase that are not always documented in formal Demotic texts.

The chronological formula appears at the end: “Written in year 31, month Phamenoth, day 12.” The ruler is not named. Bresciani argues that the most likely identification is Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II, whose thirty-first regnal year corresponds to 149 BC. She notes that year 31 of Ptolemy IX Soter II, corresponding to 85 BC, is possible in theory, but considers it less likely on palaeographical grounds.

Personal names and cultural environment

The letter is particularly valuable for the study of cultural interaction in Ptolemaic Egypt. The names Petesnes, Au, Paosiris, Khonsis, Horos and Paamunis belong to an Egyptian onomastic environment. At the same time, the letter includes the name Ammonios, clearly Greek, and the problematic name Khalelos, which Bresciani treats as foreign or non-Egyptian. This mixture of names is typical of the social landscape of Ptolemaic Egypt, where Egyptian, Greek and other eastern Mediterranean elements could coexist within the same local document.

The most striking element is the reference to Horos “the Rhodian”. Bresciani proposed that the Demotic expression pꜣ rts should be understood as the transcription of the Greek ethnic Ῥόδιος, “Rhodian”. If correct, this would be the first known occurrence of this ethnic designation in Demotic. The phrase is especially interesting because Horos bears an Egyptian name while being identified by a Greek ethnic label. This may suggest origin, affiliation, nickname, social identification or professional association, although the text does not allow us to determine which of these interpretations is correct.

Functional interpretation

The letter should be understood as a practical written instruction within a small network of individuals. Its immediate purpose is to ensure that two water jars are transferred to Ammonios. The sender does not merely ask for the delivery of objects; he clarifies their origin by referring to Horos the Rhodian, who had given them to Paosiris. This indicates that the jars were part of a chain of custody or responsibility.

The repeated mention of water is important. The expression “water jars” shows that the containers are defined by their use, not merely by their physical form. The final reference to donkeys and water suggests transport, supply or labour connected with carrying water. The document therefore opens a small window onto the practical organization of daily work: the movement of containers, the use of animals, the management of water and the coordination of tasks through written communication.

This is not a fiscal receipt, a contract or a formal order. It is a private letter, but it nevertheless reflects a structured world of obligations, movements and responsibilities. Its value lies in showing how writing functioned in ordinary logistical contexts.

Palaeographic and epistolary significance

OD Pisa 2 is important for the study of Demotic epistolography. Bresciani notes that the letter is useful for understanding private letter style, especially because it preserves an expression in line 5 not previously attested in this form. Such documents are essential for reconstructing the living language of Demotic writing beyond more formulaic legal or administrative texts.

The palaeography also plays a role in the dating of the ostrakon. Since the regnal year is given without the name of the king, palaeography becomes a key criterion. Bresciani favours the mid-second-century BC dating, identifying the year 31 with Ptolemy VIII rather than with Ptolemy IX. She also cautions that Demotic palaeography from Oxyrhynchus is still difficult to evaluate because of the limited number of securely studied local texts.

Visual reading

Unlike OD Pisa 1, which is a figured ostrakon, OD Pisa 2 has no figurative decoration. Its visual significance lies instead in its documentary layout. The text is distributed across both faces of a narrow sherd. The convex side contains nine lines and functions as the main writing surface, while the concave side contains five lines, including the conclusion and date.

The photographs published in Tav. I, B 1–2 show the practical nature of the object: the writing adapts to the irregular ceramic support. The use of both sides reflects economy of space and the everyday character of ostraka as writing material. This is a document produced not for display, but for communication, delivery and practical memory.

Interpretative synthesis

OD Pisa 2 is a small but highly informative document from Ptolemaic Oxyrhynchus. It records a private message about two water jars, their transfer to Ammonios and the sender’s likely assignment with donkeys and water on the following day. The letter is valuable for several reasons.

First, it documents everyday logistical practices: the movement of containers, water supply, animal transport and short written instructions. Second, it preserves a local social network formed by individuals with Egyptian, Greek and possibly foreign names. Third, it may contain the first Demotic attestation of the ethnic “Rhodian”, applied to a man named Horos. Fourth, it contributes to the study of Demotic private epistolary style, especially through an idiomatic expression in line 5 for which Bresciani found no exact parallel.

The ostrakon therefore belongs to the documentary microhistory of Oxyrhynchus. It does not describe major political events, public monuments or elite institutions. Instead, it reveals the daily mechanisms through which people coordinated labour, objects and obligations. For that reason, OD Pisa 2 is a valuable testimony to the written culture of ordinary life in Ptolemaic Egypt.