At the time of this inscription, the island of Rhodes was at the zenith of its power in the eastern Mediterranean, but the career of Philokrates seems to have been entirely concerned with improving the internal administration of his city. An inscription found at Kamiros ( TitCam_3 - Greek text ) contains a complete list of the eponymous magistrates, the damiourgoi, from 279 to 127 B.C.; and Philokrates is mentioned in that list as damiourgos in about 182 B.C. Two other inscriptions show that Philokrates was hieropoios in about 203 B.C., and epistates in about 194 B.C.; see the summary by Claire Tuan.
The earthquake that is mentioned in lines 19-21 was almost certainly the earthquake of 227/6 B.C., which devastated the island of Rhodes; see Syll_505.
Part of this inscription has been translated into German by L.Meier, "Die Finanzierung öffentlicher Bauten in der hellenistischen Polis", no.25, page 270 ( Google Books ).
It was resolved by the mastroi and the Kamirans, as proposed by Nauphilos of Plarioi, the son of Menekrates: since Philokrates of Plarioi, the son of Philostephanos, in other matters continually acted as a good man concerning the populace of Kamiros, saying and doing everything that was advantageous to them; and when he was hieropoios and agonothete and secretary of the mastroi and overseer {epistates}, as hieropoios he conducted himself in a fine and honourable manner, and in the magistracies he conducted himself in a manner advantageous to the Kamirans; and seeing that the available legal instruments 10 were missing for a period of seventy seven years, he took care that the document chests should be opened, and all the financial documents should be transcribed, with the result that the men who were appointed by the Kamirans for public business were easily able to search for the information that they wanted, without delay, and they recovered much land that had been disputed by others, by finding the documents concerning the land; and a considerable amount of money accrued from selling the land and the produce; and as the walls had fallen down 20 because of the earthquake that occurred when Theuphanes was priest, and the outskirts of the city were poorly defended, he took care that the construction of the walls should be completely finished, and he made sure that the outskirts of the city were protected and secure; and when he noticed that the Kamirans were spending a considerable amount of money every year on the maintenance of the towers and the walls, he proposed that the tasks for their maintenance should be put out to tender; and as a result of this happening, the Kamirans were freed from great expenditure, 30 and the towers and the walls were maintained; and seeing that the tasks being completed by workmen were extended over a long time, because no completion date had been specified for the tasks, he took care that a date should be stipulated to those who were chosen to supervise the workmen, and that each of the tasks should be completed on time; and when some offences were committed concerning the border land that was shared between the Kamirans and the Lindians, he took the lead so that those who had done these things should be brought to trial, and the land that was shared between the Kamirans and the Lindians should remain in the same state as it had been from the beginning; 40 and when he was elected to be damiourgos, he carried out his duties as damiourgos in a fine and honourable manner; and after he was crowned with a golden crown by the hieropoioi and the chief priest, he was the first to dedicate his crown in the office of the mastroi, being determined to display his honourable conduct towards the state at every opportunity; and in all other matters he provided his services in a strenuous and zealous manner, devoting himself to everything that was useful and advantageous to the Kamirans; therefore so that the Kamirans may be seen to commemorate good men who have died, 50 and to give each of them honours that are worthy of their benefactions, it is resolved by the mastroi and the Kamirans to praise Philokrates of Plarioi, the son of Philostephanos, and to crown him with an olive wreath; the agonothete who is appointed for the next year shall make this announcement in the contest of the Panathenaia: "the community of the Kamirans praises Philokrates of Plarioi, the son of Philostephanos, and crowns him with an ivy wreath on account of his virtue and the goodwill that he continually had towards the populace of Kamiros;" and so that this decree may be inscribed on a stele of Lartian marble, 60 the overseers who are in office shall appoint a man, and the man who is chosen shall buy a stele and shall inscribe this decree on it; the sacred treasurers shall give the man who is chosen no more than thiry drachmas for the cost of this. The overseers shall indicate a place in which the stele may be set up, and they shall append the details of the place indicated to this decree.
Philokrates of Plarioi, the son of Menekrates, was chosen to buy and inscribe the stele; and a place was indicated where the stele may be set up, on the left of the stele 70 on which the names of the high priests are inscribed.
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