P. LONDON 1912

LETTER OF CLAUDIUS TO THE ALEXANDRIANS

H. I. Bell, Jews and Christians in Egypt, London , 1924

10 November 41

(Please note that the translator has attempted to reproduce the flavour of the scribal curiosities of the Greek text. The reader may wish to supress stray letters by surrounding them with brackets { } or adding between < > what the scribe has omitted. Roman names have been Romanized and Claudianisms maintained.)

Lucius Aemilius Rectus says:

Since all the city was not abele to

be present at the revelation of the

most sacred and beneficial letter

5 ta the city because of its size,

I thought it nesessary to publish

the letter that man by man each

understanding the letter you may

wonder at the majesty of our god Caesar

10 and for his [[agree]] goodwill toward the city

be grateful. (year) 2 of Tiberius Claudius

Caesar Sebastos Germanicus autokrator,

month of Neos Sebasto<s> 14.

(Column) 2

Tiberius Claudius Caesar Sebastos Germanicus autokrator archiereus

15 supreme, having the tribunician power, consul designate, to the city

of the Alexandrines, greeting. Tiberius Claudius Barbillus Apollonios son of Artimidoros,

Chairemon son of Leonidas, Marcus Iulius Asclepiades, Gaius Iulius Dionysio<s>,

Tiberius Claudius Phanias, Pasion son of Potamon, Dionysios son of Sabbion,

Tiberius Claudi<u>s, Apolloni<o>s son of Ariston, Gaius Iulius Apollonios, Hermaпskos

20 son of Apollonios, tha ambassadors from you, after delivering the decree to me,

went on extensivley about the city drawing my attention to the goodwill

towards us, which for some time, as you should know well, has been held in e

trust with me; for you are eusebeis (respectful) in regard to the Sebastoi, as has

become evident to me from many things, especially how you are both eager about my

25 house and how eagerness is returned, of which ‑ I mention the lat‑

est, passing over others ‑ the greatest witness is my own brother,

Germanicus Caesar, when he spoke to you publicly in a most genuine voice.

Therefore, I did happily accept the honours granted me by you

even though I am not prroneto such things. Furst of all I leeave it to you to

30 treat my birthday as sebaste in the manner that you yourselves pro‑

posed, also to the erection in severeral places of statues of

me and my kin I agreee; for I seae

you are eger to establish everywhere reminders of our eusebia

towards my house. Of the twin g[old]en statues, however,

35 the one of the Claudian‑Sebastan Peace, as was suggested

and as my most hon[our]ed friend Barbillus entrea[t]ed while I demured

on account of s[ee]min[g] too arrogant, shall be set up at Rome;

the other, moreover, in a manner you see fit shall process on eponymous

days among you; moreover, a throne shall accompany [[and i]] it

40 adorned with any decoration you wishe. It might, then, perrhaps be silly

after accepting such honours as these to refuse the establishment of a Claudian tribe

and groves according to the custom of Egyp; therefore, I

also grante these things to [[us]] you; moreover, if you wish

you may erect an equestrian statue of Vitrasius Pollio my procurator. Moreover, regarding the

45 erecti[o]n of the four horse chariots trance into the chora you wishe to set up for me,

I agreee to setting up one near the place called Taposiris in Lybia,

another near Pharos in Alexandria, a third near Pelusium

in Egyp . But my own high priest and the building of a temple

I deprecat , not wishing to be arogant to min of my own day,

50 for sacred things and the like are granted by every

age to the gods alone as special honors in my opini[o]n.

About the requests, however, which you have been eag‑

er to get from me I deciede as follows: all who became epheboi up to

my leadership I cun[[fir]]firme, and I protecte for them the citizenship of the

55 Alexandrines with the prevliges and indulginces of the polis,

to all except any who have escaped your notice as born from slaves

while becoming epheboi; and no less with respect to other matters I wishe to be

confirmed everything graciously granted you by leaders before my time

and kings and prefects just as [the] god Sebastos had confirmed.

60 The neokoroi of the the temple in Alexandria which is of the god

Sebastos I wishe to be chosen by lot in the manner as thos in Kanopos

of the same god Sebastos are chosen by lot. About the polit‑

cal offices becoming triennial you seam to me [[y]] to have planned

quit well; forchons out of fear of rendering account of governing badly

65 well behave more moderately with uss for the duration of theiroffices.

About the boule, however, whatever may have been your

situation under the old kings I would have nothing to say; that, however, under the

Sebastoi before me you haad none you know clearly. As a novel

business now set before me for the furst time and as unclear if it

70 will be useful to the polis or my affairs I wrote to Aemilius Rectus

to investigate and to informe me if it is necessery that the institution be established,

and, if it should be rite to draw one together, the manner to do it.

But for the riot and uprising against the Judaeans (=Ioudaioi), rather, if the truth be

told, the war, which of the two sides was responsible, even though

75 your envoys strove for great honour from the confrontation,

and especially Dionysios son of The[o]n, still

I did not want to have a strict investigation, while storing up in me

unrepentant rage against the ones starting again.

But I announcee frankly that, unless you put a stop to this des‑

80 tructive, relentless rage against each other, I shall be forced

to show whot a benevolant leader is when turned toward righteous rage.

For this I yet again still beare witness that Alexandrines, on the one hand,

behav gently and kindly with the Judeans, the

inhabitants of the same city from a long time ago,

85 and not be disrespectful of the customs used in the ritual

of their god, but let them use ther customs

as in the time of the god Sebastos even as I myself, after hearing

both sides, have confirmed; to the Judians

I geive strict orders not to agitate for moore than

90 they had before, nor as though dwel‑

ling in two cities to send in future two delegations,

whych had not ever been done before; nor intrude in the

gymnasiarchic or kosmetic contests

reaping the fruits of their households while enjoing

95 the abundance of benfits without envy in a foreign polis;

nor to introduce or bring in Judaeans from Syria

or sailing down from Egyp, from which I shall

be forsd to have serious suspicions; or else I

shall take vengence on them in every way as though

100 rousing up some common plague on the world. If

after you stand aside from these things you both should

wish to live together with gentleness and kindnes towards each other,

I shall send forth to the hihest degree providence for the city

as belonging to or household from bygone times.

105 I bear witness to my companion Barbillus always showing regar[d]

for us (you ?) before me, and who just now with complete zeal

for honour has consult[ed] about the contest about you,

and to Tiberius Claudius Archibios my compan[ion.]