This decree belongs to the same year as Syll_588, when Aristeus was stephanephoros at Magnesia. For a discussion of the cult of Zeus Sosipolis, see M.H.Jameson, "Cults and Rites in Ancient Greece", page 154 ( Google Books ).
For another translation of this inscription, with commentary, see CGRN_194 .
In the year of Aristeus, the son of Demetrios son of . . ., as stephanephoros, in the month of Smision, in the presidency of the Attalis tribe, with (?) Pythokles son of Hegesippos acting as secretary of the council, on the 27th day of the month, in full assembly, with Menestratos son of Artemidoros leading on behalf of the presidents; concerning the proposals
It was resolved by the council and the people, and this is the decision of the people: that the stewards in office shall purchase a bull, and the stewards in office in the future shall purchase a bull, as beautiful as possible, at the festival in the month of Heraion each year; and they shall dedicate it to Zeus at the start of the sowing season, on the first day of the month of Kronion, along with the priest and priestess of Artemis Leukophryene and the stephanephoros and the sacred herald and the sacrificer who serves the city; the supervisors of boys shall send along nine boys, who have both parents still alive, and the supervisors of women shall send along nine maidens, who have both parents still alive. When the bull is dedicated, the sacred herald - along with the priest and the priestess and the stephanephoros and the boys and the maidens and the polemarchs and the hipparchs and the stewards and the secretary of the council and the checking-clerk and the general - shall offer prayers for the safety of the city and its territory and its citizens and their wives and their children and the other residents of the city and its territory; they shall pray for peace and wealth and the corn harvest and all other produce and farm animals.
It is resolved by the council and the people that the stephanephoros who is in office, along with the priest and priestess of Artemis Leukophryene, shall lead a procession on the twelfth day of the month of Artemision, and shall sacrifice the bull that has been dedicated. In the procession there shall be the senate and the priests and the archons (both those elected and those chosen by lot) and the ephebes and the youths and the boys and the victors at the Leukophryena games and any other victors in games with a prize of crowns. The stephanephoros who leads the procession shall carry wooden images of all the twelve gods, adorned as beautifully as possible, and shall build a tholos in the agora by the altar of the twelve gods, and shall furnish three couches as beautifully as possible, and shall provide musicians: a flute-player, a piper and a cithara-player.
The stewards shall provide three sacrificial victims on the twelfth day of the month of Artemision, to be sacrificed to Zeus Sosipolis, to Artemis Leukophryene and to Pythian Apollo: [to Zeus] a ram (as beautiful as possible), to Artemis a female goat, and to Apollo a male goat. The sacrifice to Zeus shall be made on the altar of Zeus Sosipolis; and the sacrifices to Artemis and Apollo shall be made on the altar of Artemis. The priests of these gods shall receive the usual perquisites. When they sacrifice the bull, they shall share the meat with the members of the procession; and when they sacrifice the ram and the goats, they shall share the meat with the stephanephoros and the priestess and the neopoiai and the examiners {eutheunoi} and the liturgists; the stewards shall distribute the meat.
When the bull is dedicated, the stewards shall put it out to be reared by whoever accepts the contract; and the contractor shall bring the bull to the agora and shall collect from the corn-sellers and the other merchants whatever is needed to rear the bull; and it will be well for them to give what is needed. The stewards shall inscribe this decree in the vestibule of the temple of Zeus, and the stewards shall spend what is needed to accomplish everything that is written here, out of the funds that they hold for the management of the city. [This] decree shall be reckoned as providing for the protection [of the city].
Attalus' home page | 21.09.17 | Any comments?