Texts A and B of the "Horothesia" Dossier at Istros Oliver, James H Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies; Summer 1965; 6, 2; ProQuest pg. 143

Texts A and B of the Horothesia 
Dossier at Istros 

James H. Oliver 

I N EXCAVATIONS near the mouth of the Danube at the Greek site of 
Istros, which the Romans miscalled Histria, two fragmentary copies 
of a dossier concerning the exploitation of a pine grove and above 

all concerning the fishing rights of the Histrians were discovered in 
1914. In 1916 Vasile Parvan published photographs of both inscriptions 
(A and B), also a drawing of A. The Greek text he gave was a composite 
text. This procedure makes it impossible to understand the situation 
in regard to the length of lacunae and misleads both editor and reader 
in regard to restorations. We need both texts side by side, because one 
supports the other, while some problems, and errors of restoration, 
first emerge in such a collocation. Later Pippidi's text of B reflected 
the inscription as it looked in 1958, but the text of B needs to be given 
as it was in 1915 before it suffered further damage. After Pippidi's 
discovery of an old photograph of another fragment of A, a complete 
publication of A too becomes more desirable than ever. 

TEXT A 
The inscription engraved on a sandstone block has now crumbled 

away. 
The side with lines 66-87, not visible to Parvan, was published by 

D. M. Pippidi, "Un fragment in edit al hotarniciei lui Laberius Maximus 
(SEC I 329)," Studii clasice 6 (1964) 331-42 with a summary in German, 
with photographs of pertinent sections of both A and B, and with 
D. Pecurariu's drawing of the rest of A. No transcription of the other 
lines, those on the front of the block, was ever published, though Vasile 
Parvan, "His tria N," Analele Academiei romane, Seria II, 38 (1915-1916), 
Memoriile sectiunii istorice, pp. 556-58, No. 15 (with photograph on 
Plate IV and drawing on p. 557), reported their existence. Accordingly, 
the text we offer below is the first edition of the front and of the 
inscription as a whole. 

143 



144 THE HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS 

FRONT 

~-------------------------~ 
[- - - - - - T]u[ rg]iculum [- - - - - - - - - - - - -] 
[- - - CalabeJo milia passum [circitJer D[X] VI [ ] 
[v 'E1TL]O''TOA~ Eaf3Elvov v t'/>A[a Eaf3E]Lvos '/O''TpLa[vwv] 

10 [~pxovO'w] f30vAfj ~h7/Ll[J v xatpELv. T[ 0] 7TEP~ IIEvK7J[v V/LEI:V] 
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[AaA~O'w Of K] al Al{/LL }ALav4J oLao6Xl[J /LOV Ka~ Els 'TO 
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15 [Eaf3Etvov· t'/>A] Eaf3El:vo[S 'l]O''TpLaVWV apxovO'LV f30VAfj 
[o~/L4J v xatpE]Lv v E[l Ka~ 'TJo rijS' Ka'Ta 'TOV "/a'Tpov 
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OLIVER PLATE 2 

HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS, TEXT A, FRO:-<T 

(from PZtnan, A nalele Academiei romdne 1915-1916) 



PLATE 3 OLIVER 

HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS, TEXT A, SIDE 

(from Pippidi, Stlldii clasice 6) 



JAMES H. OLIVER 

aOpava'Ta 'T'Y}PELV oiKata· EYW OE 'Toaov'Tov &1TEXW 
AO A I A' I .J.. \ I • ~ 'TOV paVaat 'Tt 'TWV EK XPOVOV ,/-,Vl\aUUO{-tEVWV V{-tH <V > 

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50 ~" '\ \ 'E'\ \ , '" \, \ 'P[ J KOU{-tEtV apxatav 1TOl\tV Kat 1\I\'Y}V'Y)ua Kat EtS 'TOV ~ E-

f3aa'TOV ~va~f3fj Kat 1TPOS ~/J-as aVTOVS ovaav ~va~-
f3~ vvv • E1Tta'TOA~ TovMiov TEj.dvov vacat 
TOVAAtos rE{-ttVOS v 1TpEa{3EV'T~S Kat aV'TtU'Tpa:rYJY( os) 
Tt{3. KAa<v>oiov Katuapos EE{3( aa'TOv) rEp/J-aVtKOV 'Ia'Tptavwv 

55 [&]PXOVUtV {3ovAfj o~{-tctJ XaipEtv. Ol1TPEU{3EtS v{-twv LI[i-J 
[Kat]C?s Xa{3ptas Xatp~{-twv LI'Y}/J-~'TptoS Alaxpiwv '!.ha~[os] 
[- - - - ME]toias Lltovvaoowpos 'HY['Y}uJayopas 'Apw'Tay[o-] 
[pas - - - - -Jos EV'TVXOV'T~S j.t[Ot EV] To{-tEt 'TO if;~cpta{-ta 
[vj.twv €1TEOOaav K J<:~ Els 'TOV .E[ E{3a ]U'TOV ~{-tw[v E1TtOEtga-] 

60 [PEVOt EVVotaV avvNuO'Y}aav E1T[t Tfj] ~(-tE'TEPo/- V[ytEio/- Kat 1Ta-] 
[pova{o/-. U1ToVOatO'Ta]'T'YJV 1TOt'Y}aa{-tEVOt ~[v 1TEpt eLv EVE'TEtAau-] 
[0 ' A • \ I 'J \ l' \ \ [p , • A , '] E aV'TOts 0j.ttl\tav· E 1TtyvOVS OVV <'T >'Y}V Kat 1T OS 'Y}{-tas av'TOVS 
[rrys 1ToAEWS vj.tWv Ot[ aOEaLV. 1TEtpaaOj.tat [aEi TtVOS Vj.tELV] 

145 

[ayaOov YEVEaOat] ,,!apaiTtos· 1TEpt OE JIEV[K'Y}S Kat 'TWV 'TOV 1TO'Ta-] 
65 [pov a'Toj.ta'Twv otoa ]XOELS V1TO 'TWV 1TpEUf3[ EWV vj.twv 'TWV 1TpoyEypaj.t-] 

SIDE 

r .. ' ''''' ] A 0 ' ~ [ \ A " A ., ] lJA'EVWV, EOtKatWUa 'T'YJptU at V{-tHV 'T a 'TWV 1TPOYOVWV Vj.tWV opta . 

[Exemplum decreti Mani La]beri M[a]xi[m]i l[eg. Aug. pr(o) pr.] 
[Imp. Caesare Traiano Aug. Ge]rmt;t1)-ic[o III Iulio Fron-] 
[tino III cos(ulibus), V]III kt;t!. ~[o]vem[bres. Descriptum] 

70 ret recogn]itum factum ex ~q1!1[m(entar)io Mani Laberi] 
[Maximi] leg. Aug. pr(o) pr., penni[ttente Fabio Pompeiano q. i.] 
[scrip]ta sunt. "Charago1)-[io Philopalaestro conduct(ore)] 
[pub ]l( ici) portori ripae Thr[ aciae postulante ut por -] 
[tor]ium sibi Halmyridi[s et Peuci daretur: Secundum] 

75 [fo]rm(am) quam accepit i[us exigendi portori habet a fini-] 
[bu]s canabar(um) Di[mensium usque ad mare - - - - --] 
[ .. ]ducet a SaC - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[l]egionarii V[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ] 
[ ... ]eistet;tt[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ] 

80 [ ... ] Histrian[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -] 
[ ... ] et reg[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ] 
[ ... ]~!!oba~[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ] 
[v]eterano [- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -] 



146 THE HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS 

'?~tare qu[- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Labe-] 
85 rius Max[imus - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -] 

~aque ~q[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -] 
[ . ]accos m[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -] 
[ .. Jceda[- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -J 
~-------------------------

The restorations of A, front, are based on readings and restorations of B 
except for £7TLKOV1>t€'iTCXt in A 33, vvv CXlrrOKpaTOpos in A 34, Ll [tKCXt]OS or Ll [t1>u\ ]os 
in A 55-56, KCXt in A 63, TOV 1TOTCXJLOV in A 64-65, and TWV 1TPOy€ypcxJLJL€VWV in A 65-
66, all of which are new restorations by Oliver. In A 36 the reading Kcx]Ta 

(Oliver) and in A 56 '.QTcx~({6s (Franciszek Piejko) constitute new evidence. In 
A 46 YME, 47 YMEI, 54 KAALlIOY stone. 

The restorations of A, side, are by Pippidi except for com[m(entar)io in A 70 
and q(uae) i(nfra) in A 71 by Oliver, though Pippidi had the reference to the 
journal in the form ex com[m(entariis). In A 75, where Pippidi restored [formaJm, 
Oliver and Kevin Clinton think they read [foJ~(am), and the present habet 
(Oliver) fits the space better than habebit (Pippidi). The line division of A 67-68, 
71-72, 72-73 and 73-74 has been slightly altered, and some letter traces in 
A 79, 82 and 84 have been differently interpreted. In A 67 we return to the 
word decreti which Dessau restored in B, whereas Pippidi substituted Parvan's 
epistulae. 

TEXT B 
Vasile Parvan, "Histria IV," Analele Academiei romane, Seria II, 38 

(1915-1916), Memoriile sectiunii istorice, pp. 558-93, No. 16 with 
photograph on plate v, drawing on p. 560, composite Greek and Latin 
text, and Rumanian commentary. Contributions to the text have been 
made also by the following: Adolf Wilhelm, Ak. Wien, Anzeiger 59 
(1922) 78-82; W. Cronert, SEG I (1924) 329; H. Dessau, "Zur Reihen­
folge der Statthalter Moesiens," lOAl 23 (1926) Beiblatt 345-48; H. 
Nesselhauf, "Publicum portorii Illyrid utriusque et ripae Thradae," 
Epigraphica 1 (1939) 331-38 at 334; D. M. Pippidi, "Das Stadtgebiet von 
Histria in romischer Zeit auf Grund der • Opo()mLa des Laberius 
Maximus (SEG I 329)," Dacia, N.S., 2 (1958) 227-47, reprinted with 
photographs in Epigraphische Beitritge zur Geschichte Histrias in hellen­
istischer und romischer Zeit (= D. Ak. Wiss. Berlin, Schriften der Sektion 
fur Altertumswissenschaft, 34 [1962J) 133-53, with a text of B alone 
(though composite in lines 52-53) but more important for its bibliog­
raphy, photographs, good discussion of territory and of dates. (AE 



JAMES H. OLIVER 147 

1919, 10, F. F. Abbott and A. C. Johnson, Municipal Administration in 
the Roman Empire [Princeton 1926] 384-86, No. 68, and M. P. Charles­
worth, Documents Illustrating the Reigns of Claudius and Nero [Cambridge 
1939, reprinted 1951] 35-37 with acknowledgement to Dessau, four of 
whose six changes he then forgot to incorporate, contribute nothing 
to the text.) On the tax district see, in addition to Pippidi and Nessel­
hauf, S. J. De Laet, Portorium: Etude sur l' organisation douaniere chez les 
Romains surtout a l' epoque du Haut-Empire (= Rijksuniversiteit te Gent, 
Werken uitgegeven door de Faculteit van de Wijsbegeerte en Letteren, 
105 [1949]) 204-209. 

The following text of B is based primarily on Parvan's photograph, 
which shows more of the inscription as extant, though Pippidi's 
slightly retouched photograph is more legible and can be used as a 
control for most of what Parvan could read. 

r Opo()w{a Aa(3Ep{ov Magtf1-ov v[ 7TaTLKov] 

Fines Histrianorum hos esse ean[stitui - - - - - - - --] 
ueem laceum Halmyridem ado [- - - - - - - - - - - -] 
Argamensium, in de iuga summa [- - - - - - - ad e-] 

5 onjluentes rivorum Pieuseuli et Ga[brani, inde ab im-] 
a Gabrano ad eapud eiusdem, inde [- - - - - - - - -] 
Sanpaeum, inde ad rivum Turgieu[lum - - - - - -] 
a rivo Calabaeo, milia passum circi[ter DXVI ] 

'E7TLa'TO'\~ Ea(3E{vov 

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20 

25 

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yap TWV 'Tij<; v'\'Y}S XPEtWV &v{y }af1-cpLa.B~T'Y}T[ a EXETE opLaJ 



148 THE HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS 

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po~ -ryp.wv· tva fL~ fL6vov 8tac/>vAaxOfj aA[A<t Kat avg7JOfi] 

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I 'Q I I ~ < I "[ ... ~ I ~ ] EVOP.EVWV txuvwv 1TP0O'ooov vp.ETEpav E' vaL, CfJ oLKatCfJ Tav-

Ta T<t TtA7J Ol1Tp6yoVOL vP.Wv Kat 1TaTtpES T[fj XaptTL TWV l:Ef3aUTWV] 
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Y€VEO'Oat 1TapalT£os' 1TEpt 8~ II€VK7J~ Kat TWV O'Top.[aTWV St8axO€-J 

60 LS V1TO TWV 1TptUf3€WV vp.wv €StKalwaa T7JpiO'OaL vp.[ €iv T<t TWV 1TpO-] 
y6vwv vp.wv VV opta vacat Exemplum [decreti] 
Ma<n)i Laberi Maximi leg. Aug. pr(o) pro vv[vacat] 
Imp. Caesar<e) Traiano Aug. German[ico III Iulio Fron-] 



OLIVER PLATE 4 

HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS, TEXT B 

(from Pan ,111, A.nalele A.cademiei romdne 1915-1916) 



JAMES H. OLIVER 

tino III cos· VIII ka • Novembres . v [Descriptum] 
65 et recognitum factum ex comm(entar)io v M[ani Laberi] 

Maximi • leg. Aug. preo) pro vv permitte[nte scriba] 
Fabio Pompeiano quae im<f)ra scri[pta sunt vvv] 
«Charagonio Phi<l)o<p)alaestro con [duct . publ • por-] 
tori ripae Thraciae postulante ut [portor(ium) sibi Hal-] 

70 myridis et Peud daretur: Secun[ dum formam quam] 
[acce]pit ius eXigendi portor[i habet a finibus] 
[canab]arum Dimensium usque [ad mare ] 

vacat 

149 

REsTORATIONS, apart from those which present themselves automatically 
in A: 1-2 parvan. 2-3 PeJ I ucem parvan. 3 a do[minio Parvan, ad o[ram territorii 
Nicorescu apud Pippidi. 4 ad c] Parvan, [collium usque ad cJ Nicorescu. 5-8 

parvan. 11 01TWS aK€pClLOV Wilhelm. 12 Wilhelm. 13 Al{/Lt}Atavw Dessau. 15,22 
parvan. 30 Kal Ai/LtAt] Parvan, AlAt] Dessau. 31 Wilhelm. 32 E1TLKOv4>u:.i-rat 
Oliver, 1TpovoLas 'TV'}'Xav€t 1TPO ovv (too long) Wilhelm. 33 vVvav-roKpa-roJpos 
Oliver, KaLaapos Ka~ ws aAryOws aw...ry]pos (too long) Wilhelm. 34 Wilhelm. 
35 -rwv Ka[-ra IhuK1]s Oliver, -rwv Ka[-ra a-r0/La IIEvK1]s parvan. 36 cP Wilhelm, 
-r]0 Parvan; -rail]-ra Wilhelm, -rav]-ra parvan. 37 parvan. 41 ~gto[ih-E 

Wilhelm, ~gLO[V -rE Parvan. 44 <Xv E1ToLryaa Wilhelm, aVE1ToLryaa parvan. 
47 EETAI stone. 50 ANTIETPArOE stone. 52 'Q-ra[Kos Piejko. 54 -nJv 
Cronert. 55 Wilhelm. 56 Wilhelm; IOTHEAMENOI stone. 57 <-r>TJv Ka~ 

1TPOS [~/Las aihovs ...rys] Wilhelm, ~v Ka~ 1TpOS [~/Las EvE4>aVtaav ...rys] Cronert. 
58 v[/Le'iv ayaOoil parvan. 59 StSax8E] Wilhelm, a-r0/L[a-rwv 1TEta8EJ parvan. 60 
parvan. 61 decreti Dessau, epistulae Parvan. Ma<n)i Dessau, MARl stone. 
63 parvan. 64 Parvan, CAESARI stone. 65 comm(entar)io Oliver, comm(entariis) 
M[ari Laben] Parvan, M[ani Dessau. 66 permitte[n- Parvan, permitte[nte 
Dessau; scribaJ Oliver. im<f>ra Oliver, IMERA stone, infra Dessau, i<a)m 
era(nt) parvan. 67 scri[pta Parvan; sunt Dessau. 68 Phi<l)o(p)alaestro 
Nesselhauf, PHICORALAESTRO stone; con[ductore publici porJ Parvan, 
con[duct . publ . Oliver. 70-72 secun[dum veterem legem] and a finibus Parvan, 
habet Oliver, the rest by Pippidi (Studii clasice 6 [1964J 331-42). 

COMMENTARY 

Whereas Parvan thought that the inscriptions dated from the time 
of Trajan because of the date by consuls in B 63-64, S. Lambrino1 

argued because of the lettering and the many ligatures that the 

1 REL 16 (1938) 27. 



150 THE HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS 

inscriptions were engraved in the first years of the third century after 
Christ, although the identifiable documents of the dossier were 
earlier. Stein2 rejected this argument but Pippidi3 agreed with 
Lambrino. The discovery of the side of A has now produced a docu­
ment later than the decision of Laberius Maximus, with which the 
date by consuls is connected. This seems to support Lambrino's 
rejection of a date in the time of Trajan. It does not, however, confirm 
his inference that the publication was part of measures taken by 
Septimius Severus to reorganize the Roman frontier near the mouths 
of the Danube. An explanation from a different point of view will be 
offered infra, but a date in the time of the Severi still seems acceptable, 
though probably less so than one under Marcus Aurelius. 

There are now eight documents as follows: 

1. Latin decision of the legate of Lower Moesia, Laberius 
Maximus, on the boundaries of the Histrians, A.D. 100. 

2. Greek epistle of Flavius Sabinus, legate of the still undi­
vided Moesia, to the Histrians, A.D. 50 or shortly afterwards. 

3. Another Greek epistle of Flavius Sabinus to the Histrians, 
A.D. 56 or shortly afterwards. 

4. Greek epistle of Pomponius Pius, legate of undivided 
Moesia, to the Histrians, A.D. 67 or shortly afterwards. 

5. Greek epistle of Plautius Silvanus Aelianus, legate of 
undivided Moesia, to the Histrians, A.D. 57 or shortly after­
wards. 

6. Greek epistle of Tullius Geminus, legate of undivided 
Moesia, to the Histrians, A.D. 47 or shortly afterwards. 

7. Authenticated copy of the Latin minute of the legate 
of Lower Moesia, Laberius Maximus, upon the claim of 
Charagonius Philopalaestrus,' a contractor of custom duties, 
A.D. 100. 

8. A Latin document (of unknown authorship) which 
mentions Laberius Maximus and so may date from the first 

a A. Stein, Die Legaten von Moesien (= Dissertationes Pannonicae, Ser. I, 11 [1940]) 61, 
n.6. 

8 Dacia, N.S., 2 (1958) 232 (= D. M. Pippidi, Epigraphische Beitriige tilT Geschichte Histrias 
in hellenistischeT und TomischeT Zeit [D. Akad. Wiss. Berlin, Schr. Sekt. Alt. 34, 1962] 138). 

, There is no longer any question of the right nomen and cognomen. As H. Nesselhauf, 
Epigraphica 1 (1939) 334, pointed out, the man is known from an inscription of Novae 
(= Steklen in Bulgaria); [Invicto) deo Me/ichrysus P. Caragoni Philopalaestri [- - -. 



JAMES H. OLIVER 

years of the third century, but may well be as early as the sec­
ond half of the second century.5 

151 

The main differences between the two inscriptions are the follow­
ing. In A 15 7Tp€Uf3EVTfJ~ has been omitted. In A 17 /LEXPL, in B 17 /LEXpL~. 
In A 29 nOfL7Tc.bvLos seems to have been omitted. In A 30 tPAcxf3lov seems 
not to have been abbreviated. In A 39 aAA?'}. In A 49 €VEUTCXL, in B 47 
eUTCXL. In A 50 apxalav and tEAA?'}vfJ8a, in B 47 apXEav and tEAA?'}vt8a. In 
A 53 avnuTpaTT)Y( os), in B 50 avnuTpayo~. In B 52 three names were 
omitted. In A 58 ¢;fJ~La/La, in B 54 ¢;fJ~La. A 59 has a shorter version than 
B 54, where Cronert rightly added a word. There is a longer version 
in A 63-65 than in B 59-60, because some words have been omitted in 
B. In A 69 kal., in B 64 ka. A 71 has a shorter version than B 65-66. 
More of the dossier was engraved on the front of B than on the front 
of A, more on the side of A than on the lost side of B. 

B 4, iugo summo: Compare the phrase per summa iuga in the Per­
rhaebian boundary decision of Verginius Publianus, AE 1913,2, first 
published in BSA 17 (1910-1911) 195. 

A 8: D[XJVI and D[LJVI are equally possible restorations. 
A 12 = B 13: The prefect Arruntius Flamma is mentioned in the 

text cited in note 5. According to Parvan and Dessau he is a praefectus 
orae maritimae, for which see G. Barbieri, RivFilClass N.S., 19 (1941) 
268-80 and 24 (1946) 166-71. Compare the reference to a prefect in 
A 20 = B 20. There were forty Roman warships in the Black Sea 
(Josephus, Bell. Iud. 2.366). 

5 v. Parvan, "Histria VII," Academia Romdna, Memoriile sectiunii istorice, Seria ill, Tomu12 
(1923, published in 1924), No. 40 on pp. 47-51 with French resume on pp. 116-17 gives a 
text and drawing of an inscription which had lettering identical in his opinion with that of 
our texts A and B and which mentions the same (praeftctus) Arruntius Flamma. The text 
reads: 

- - - - - -] His[tr - - - --
- - Pontiu]s iaeii[anus - - -

3 -' Apovv ]r{cp C/>'\a/-,[/-,If - - -

- - - -] ~ov).T) 8T)~[- - --

- - - - 1m J?v8~v [- - - -

The name of Pontius Laelianus, a legate of ca. A.D. 170, was restored by D. M. Pippidi, 
Epigraphische Beitriige 152, n.69. Pippidi agrees that thelettering is very similar andin making 
the restoration he admits in my opinion that A.D. 170 is not at all too early for our texts 
A and B. Document 8 could have originated with Pontius Laelianus. Think also of IOSPE 
I 3 (E. H. Minns, Scythians and Greeks p. 640) which shows that Marcus Aurelius and 
Lucius Verus granted to Tyras exemption from customs dues. 

6-G.R.B.S. 



152 THE HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS 

A 13 = B 13: Al/LtAtctVip is, as Dessau has shown and as Stein and 
Pippidi agree, an error for AlAtctv<f), an error not by the stonecutter 
but by the scribe. There was no imperial legate Aemilianus in this 
period. Aelianus, on the other hand, is well known from InscrItal I 
1.125 = ILS 986. See now Pippidi, "Tib. Plautius Silvanus Aelianus und 
die romische Politik in Moesien unter Neros Regierung," Epigraphische 
Beitrtige 106-132. 

B 32, ~ aafNvtct . . . [J1T£KOVc/"€tTctt]: A medical metaphor occurs. 
See Soranus, Gynaecia 2.3.1 (for this verb) and 3.38.2 (for a parallel 
to the abstract noun in association). 

B 33-34, TOU B€tOTd.TOV [vuv ctVTOKpd.TO Jpo~: Aelius Aristides, Roman 
Oration 107, says 0 yE /L~V vuv apxwv /LEYct~ in referring to the emperor. 

A 43-45 = B 42-43, 7Tctpct7T€/LcpfHjvctt •.. T~V ... 7Tp€a{j€lctv: The 
Histrians had asked, not that a message be sent on (so Parvan, Ausonia 
10 [1921] 194), but that the two-man embassy be sent on. The governor 
did so but not without indicating that it was a favor which he would 
not ordinarily accord. Hence it was not just a question of letting the 
ambassadors pass through or of including another piece of papyrus in 
his next pouch to Rome. The governor was being asked to supply the 
ambassadors with two (or one) of his few diplomata so that they could 
make the journey to Rome by means of the cursus publicus6 in order 
to honor Sabinus with a very special testimonial of the city's gratitude. 
How difficult it was to grant this favor, though Nero hardly expected 
as much restraint as Trajan did, may be appreciated from Pliny's 
apologetic letter exx to the emperor after giving a diploma to his own 
wife, who had to hurry back to Italy because of a death in the family: 
Usque in hoc tempus, domine, neque cuiquam diplomata commodavi neque in 
rem ullam nisi tuam misi. From Pliny's word misi one may infer that 
in the right context the verb mittere meant "to send a person on by 
the public post," and into 7Tapa7TE/L7T€tJl we may surely read this 
nuance, when it appears in the same context, on the evidence afforded 
by the infinitive 7T€/LcpBfjvctt which the governor of Moesia uses in our 
inscription. 

A 55-56, J[t/Kctt]OS: Syllabic division is almost certainly respected, 

I For diplomata see the study published anonymously by H. G. Pflaum, "Essai sur Ie 
cursus publicus dans Ie Haut-Empire Romain," Menwirfs presentes par divers savants Ii 
I'Academie des Inscriptions et de Belles Lettres de l'Institut de France, XIV (1940) 189-391, 
particularly chapter VI. Also Erik J. Holmberg, Zur Geschichte des cursus publicus (Diss. 
Uppsala 1933), though he gives more attention to the Late Empire, cites references to 
diplomata of the Early Empire. 



JAMES H. OLIVER 153 

and so there must be a lacuna at the end of A 55, but the lacuna at the 
end of A 55 is so small that there would not be room for any letter 
other than iota. The first visible letter of A 56 could by itself be theta, 
omicron or rho, but in the context it must be omicron. Since only three 
letters are unknown the name appears to be iJ{Kato~ or iJ{4JLAO~. 

A 64-65: The corresponding passage in B, where the phrase reads 
TWV aTo/L[ aTwv, is ten letters shorter, but the right length for A is 
achieved by restoring the phrase as it appears above in A 18-19. 

A 69-72 = B 64-67: The character of the heading of the authenti­
cated copy and particularly the meaning of the repeatedly misunder­
stood phrase permitte[nte ..... ] Fabio Pompeiano quae IMERA scri[pta 
sunt of B 67 become clear from comparison with the three following 
parallels. 

From Sardinia ILS 5947: Imp. Othone Caesare Aug. cos., XV k. 
Aprilis. Descriptum et recognitum ex codice ansa to L. Hel­
vii Agrippae procon(sulis), quem protulit Cn. Egnatius Fuscus scriba 
quaestorius, in quo scriptum fUit it quot infra scriptum est tabula V 
Cceris) VIII et VIllI et X. 

From Perrhaebia in province of Macedonia, AE 1913, 2: Imp. 
Caesare Ne[rva Tra]e. Au. Ger. IIII [Q.] Articuleio Pae[t]o [cos., 
a. d.] VI k. Apriles. [D]escriptum et re[cognitum e]x commentario 
[Ve]rgini [P]ub[liani] iudicis dati Cab im]per[at]or[e] Traeiano, 
quod protu[li]t Caelius Niger, in quo scriptum erat id q. i. s. [el 

From Caere ILS 5918: Descriptum et recognitum factum in 
pronao aedis Martis ex commentario quem iussit proferri Cuperius 
Hostilianus per T. Rustium Lysiponam scribam, in quo scriptum 
erat it quod infra scriptum est: "L. Publilio Celso II C. Clodio 
Crispino cos. idibus Aprilibus (13 April of A.D. 113), M. Pontio 
Celso dictatore, C. Suetonio Claudiano aedile iure dicundo praef 
aerari. Commentarium cottidianum municipi Caeritum, inde pagina 
XXVII, kapite VI . ... 

The best discussion is that of Th. Mommsen, "Decret des Proconsuls 
von Sardinien L. Helvius Agrippa vom J. 68 n. Chr.," Hermes 2 (1867) 
102-127 and 173 (= Gesammelte Schriften V, pp. 325-351), who shows 
that for an authenticated copy of the decision of the governor of 
Sardinia they sent to Rome. Similarly the authenticated copy of the 
decision of Laberius Maximus may have come from Rome. Fabius 
Pompeianus, accordingly, was not, as Dessau thought, a successor of 



154 THE HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS 

Laberius Maximus in the government of Lower Moesia but a scribe or 
official in Rome. For permitto in the meaning "to send overseas" 
compare Columella (ed. Lundstrom) 7.8.6: hoc genus casei potest etiam 
trans maria permitti. 

A 72 = B 68, Charagonio: Subscriptiones are recorded with the name 
of the man whose case it was coming first in PCo1123, best consulted in 
the edition of H. C. Y outie and A. A. Schiller, «Second Thoughts on the 
Columbia Apokrimata (P. Col. 123)," Chronique d'Egypte 30 (1955) 327-45. 

B 70, Peud: Professor James W. Poultney, with reference to 
Schwyzer-Debrunner, Griechische Grammatik II (Munich 1950) 42, 
suggests that the name may have fluctuated between Ih';K7] and 
ll,:fiKOS, and that Peuci is a genitive based on the latter form. 

A 84: This eighth document mentions Laberius Maximus, but it 
is not certain where the document begins. The Latin language 
suggests another decision. A later governor seems to have been 
obliged (by a tax collector?) to rule on the subject once again and 
seems to have based his decision on an authenticated copy of the 
ruling by Laberius Maximus, a copy which he procured from Rome. 
Enough remains of document 8 to show that it was not engraved like 
document 7 from an authenticated copy, and there is no reason why 
it should have been if the governor himself gave it to the Histrians. 
The word vetare occurs nearby. The prefect of Egypt Tiberius Julius 
Alexander in a famous edict 7 warned people that he would punish 
those who brought into court questions already decided. The un­
known source of document 8 probably forbade further attempts to 

infringe the traditional right and advised the Histrians to publish the 
horothesia of Laberius Maximus and the other documents prominently 
on permanent material. 

TRANSLATION 

Decision of the Consular Laberius Maximus fixing Boundaries 

I have appointed the following as boundaries of the Histrian 
territory: - - - - - -, Halmyris lagoon; from - - - - of the Armagen­
sians, thence along the top of the ridge - - - - - to the junction of the 
streams Picusculus and Gabranus, thence from the lower Gabranus 
to its head, thence - - - - - - Sanpaeus, thence to the stream Tur­
giculus - - - - - - - from the stream Calabaeus, about 516 miles. 

7 H. G. Evelyn White and J. H. Oliver, The Temple of Hibis in EI Khargeh Oasis II (Metro­
politan Museum, New York 1938) No.4 = OGIS 699, lines 38-40. 



JAMES H. OLIVER 

Epistle of Sabinus 

155 

Flavius Sabinus to the archons, council, demos of the Histrians 
greetings. Arruntius Flamma the prefect will take care that your 
right in connection with Peuce be preserved intact, for thus I have 
written to him. I shall speak also to Aelianus my successor and give 

you a wholehearted recommendation. 

Another Epistle of the same Sabinus 

Legate Flavius Sabinus to the archons, council, demos of the 
Histrians greetings. Even though the tax district of the shore of the 
Danube runs all the way to the sea and the town is so great a distance 
from the mouths of the river, nevertheless, since your ambassadors 
affirmed, and the prefect Asiaticus said so too, that the revenue there 
from pickled fish is just about the city's only revenue, I have decided 
that the same freedom to fish according to your custom at the Peuce 
mouth and to transport the pine wood without tax for the use of 
each individual should remain to you. In fact you have undisputed 
boundaries for the wood; and you have all the enjoyment therefrom 
without an accounting to the tax office. 

Epistle of Pomponius Pius 

Pomponius Pius to the archons, council, demos of the Histrians 
greetings. Even from what was written to you by Flavius Sabinus and 
Aelianus, very distinguished men who stand very high in my estima­
tion, it was possible to perceive that your distress [would be relieved 
because] the most divine present emperor takes thought for all. In 
order that the rights of the city might be not only preserved but 
increased, I have decreed that the revenue from fishing below Peuce 
be yours with the same right as your ancestors and fathers obtained 
these dues by the grace of the emperors. 

Epistle of Plautius Aelianus 

Plautius Aelianus to the archons of the Histrians greetings. Your 
ambassadors, Callistratus son of Demetrius and Midias son of Arte­
midorus, delivered to me your resolution. You ask through your 
resolution that the embassy which is taking your thanks to our most 
esteemed Sabinus be sent on by public post. On account of Sabinus 



156 THE HOROTHESIA DOSSIER AT ISTROS 

himself, yes. On no one else's account would I gladly have done this. 
You ask me also to preserve your rights at Peuce undiminished. For my 
part I am so far removed from diminishing any of those rights which 
have long been guarded for you that I should like to find new ways of 
honoring an ancient Greek city which is devoted to the emperor and 
scrupulous in its dealings with us ourselves. 

Epistle of Tullius Geminus 

Tullius Geminus, legatus pro praetore of Tiberius Claudius Caesar 
Augustus Germanicus, to the archons, council, demos of the Histrians 
greetings. Your ambassadors, D[icae]us, Chabrias, Chaeremon, 
Demetrius, Aeschrion, Otac[us, - - -], Midias, Dionysodorus, Hegesa­
goras, Aristagoras, Metrodorus, having met with me at Tomis, 
delivered your resolution, and having shown the loyalty to our 
emperor, they congratulated us upon our arrival in good health. 
Most earnest was the conversation they held with us concerning the 
things you had enjoined upon them. So having appreciated the atti­
tude of your city also toward us personally, I shall always try to 
become to you the cause of some benefit. Concerning Peuce and the 
mouths of the river I have been informed by your [aforesaid] am­
bassadors and have recognized as just that your ancestral boundaries 
should be preserved for you. 

From Journal of Laberius Maximus 

Copy of the decision rendered by the imperial legate Ma<n)ius 
Laberius Maximus on the eighth day before the kalends of November 
when Imperator Caesar Trajan Augustus Germanicus for the third 
time and Julius Frontinus for the third time were consuls, authenti­
cated copy made from the journal of the imperial legate Manius 
Laberius Maximus by [the scribe?] Fabius Pompeianus, who sends the 
following text: ceRe the demand of Charagonius Philopalaestrus, 
contractor for the customs of the Thracian Shore, that the tolls of 
Halmyris and Peucus be given to him, (the legate said) <According to 
the contract which he received, [he has] the right of collecting the 
customs from the border of the Dimensian Camp all the way to 
[the sea --

THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY 

June, 1965