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Last Updated on 01 Mar 2017

Author: Sophia Zoumbaki

CAPInv. 781: Dioserapi(as)tai

I. LOCATION

i. Geographical area Peloponnese with Adjacent Islands
ii. Region Messenia
iii. Site island Prote

II. NAME

i. Full name (original language) Διοσεραπι(ασ)ταί (IG V.1 1543, ll. 1-2)
ii. Full name (transliterated) Dioserapi(as)tai

III. DATE

i. Date(s) ii (?) - iii (?) AD

IV. NAME AND TERMINOLOGY

ii. Name elements
Theophoric:Dioserapiastai: The reading is uncertain.

V. SOURCES

i. Source(s) IG V.1 1543 (II-III AD?)
Online Resources IG V.1 1543
i.a. Source type(s) Epigraphic source(s)
i.b. Document(s) typology & language/script Greek graffito: Euploia inscription (wish for a safe sea voyage)
i.c. Physical format(s) Graffito on the rock
ii. Source(s) provenance Inscribed on the rocks of the island Prote, off the Messenian coast, between Kyparissia and Pylos

XII. NOTES

i. Comments In IG V.1 1543 the reading of the name of the group appears as [φι]<λ>οσεβ̣ά[σ]των ([phi]<l>oseba[s]ton), whilst the majuscule of the text shows that the reading is not at all certain. Sandberg (1954: 9 no. 6) suggests Διοσεραπι(ασ)τῶν, Dioserapi(as)ton. This seems more compatible with the majuscule given in IG.
Both suggestions, Dioserapi(as)tai and the earlier reading Philosebastoi, display a cultic element.
Generally on the sea routes around the Cape Maleas, see Henning 2002.
iii. Bibliography Henning, D. (2002), ‘Die antike Seehandelsroute um Kap Malea’, MBAH 20: 23-37.
Sandberg, N. (1954), ΕΥΠΛΟΙΑ. Etudes Epigraphiques. Gothenburg.

XIII. EVALUATION

i. Private association Possible
Note The bad preservation of the inscription, which hampers reading with certainty, and the brevity of the text do not allow any certainty about the nature of the group mentioned.