LEWIS, NAPHTALI, The "Ivy of Liberation" Inscription , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 
31:2 (1990:Summer) p.197 

The "Ivy of Liberation" Inscription 

N aphtali Lewis 

N:. INSCRIPTION from Eretri~ in Euboe~, reprinted with 
some frequency during the past 250 years, continues to 

elicit commentary, most recently in 1990. 1 Yet none of 
these editors and commentators ever saw the stone. The only 
extant copy is incomplete, made in the course of travels by 
Cyriacus of Ancona (1392-1452). Some time later the stone 
disappeared, perhaps as a result of the fire that destroyed a large 
part of Cyriacus' collection of antiquities in 1514. 

Working with the copy of the Greek text found in Cyriacus' 
notebooks presents two major difficulties: (1) Cyriacus wrote 
the Greek-what he could read of it-as a run-on text, giving 
no indication of where the individual lines began and ended; (2) 
likewise, he did not indicate lacunae or illegible places with any 
care, leaving modern scholars to guess at the placement of these 
and at the number of letters to be supplied in each case. 

Rejecting Muratori's earlier attempt ("in arbitrarios versus 
diremit Muratorius"), A. Boeckh a century and a half ago made 
a line-division of the text that, with one later emendation by 
Dittenberger and another by Sokolowski, has since been 
universally accepted; most reprints, in fact, do not even 
mention the caveats indicated in the preceding paragraph. 2 

With those emendations the text now reads: 

'0 l.EPEUC; 'tou fll.Ovucrou 8EOOO'tOC; 8EOOropou Kat ol. 
1tOA£llapxOl. L[ro]cr(cr'tpa'toc; ilpro'tOIlEvOU, AicrxuAoc; 'Av'tavoptOou, 
'I9Ul:Y£VllS A icrxuAou d1ta(v)· E1tEtOi) 't'i1 t 1tolmil t 't'i1 t fl tOvucrou 

1 A.-F. Jacottet, "Le lierre de la liberte," ZPE 80 (1990) 150-56 with bib­
liography. 

2 Editions and reprints: L. A. Muratori, Novus Thesaurus Veterum Inscrip­
tionum ... 1(1739) cxlv; A. Boeckh, CIG II (1843) 2144; P. Le Bas, Voyage II 
(1850) 1602 (reprints CIG without restorations); W. Dittenberger, SylL (1883) 
201; SylL 2 (1898-1901) 277; C. Michel, Recueil (1900) 343; E. Ziebarth, IG XII.9 
(1915) 192; W. Dittenberger and F. Hiller von Gaertringen, SylP (1915) 323; F. 
Sokolowski, LSCG SuppL (1962) 46. 

197 



LEWIS, NAPHTALI, The "Ivy of Liberation" Inscription , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 
31:2 (1990:Summer) p.197 

198 THE -IVY OF LIBERATION" INSCRIPTION 

4 ii 'tE <ppou[p]a axftA.9EV, 0 'tE ~TlIlO~ T,AEU9EPcOOrt K[ •..• ]a 'tou~ 
i)IlVOU~ Kat 'tllV ~T1lloKpa'tiav EKollicra'to, <.mOOS imOIlVTllla 'tTl~ 
ftllEpa~ 'tau'tT\~ ~l., E~O~EV 'tTll. ~OUATll. Kat 'tOOt OTlIlC01." cr'tE<paVTI­
<P<>PElV 'EpE'tpl.El~ 1t(x.v'ta~ Kat 'tou~ EVOl.KOUV'ta~ Kl.'t'tOU cr'tE<pavov 

8 'tf\l.1tOIl1tTtl. 'tou ~l.Ovucrou· 'tou~ ~E 1toAha~ [Aa~E'iv 'tou~ cr'tEqxi.voU~] 
[cixo 'tou ~T1llocriou], a1t0lll.[cr ]9ouv 'tE ['tOY Ev apxTll. ov'ta 'talli]-
av ['t]ou~ cr['tE<p]avou~' E1tapXEcr9al. ~E Kat 'tou~ xopou~ [---] 
[- - - xop ]da~ 'ta~ 'tOOl 'tOOl ~l.OVUcrCOl [ ....... ] otvov Ka'ta1tEIl1to .. 

8-9 Aa.~E'iv ... OTUlO0'1.ou suppl. Boeckh. 9 'tOY 'talll]av Dittenberger, 
tV apxTll ov'ta Sokolowski. 

1. Some Problems 

(a) Letters per line. As presented in Syll.3 and IG XII.9, the 
inscription shows a wide variation in the number of letters in a 
line, ranging from 33 letters in line 9 to 53 letters in line 7. 
Sokolowski's addition (made without comment) of EV apXlll 
ov'ta to the restoration in line 9 was doubtless intended to 
correct the imbalance by lengthening that unacceptably short 
line. It should be observed, however, that as to sense that 
addition is essentially otiose: it goes without saying that only the 
incumbent tamias could perform the stated function. Further­
more, even if we allow that insertion, which lengthens line 9 to 
44 letters, the difference between 39 letters in line 1 and 53 
letters in line 7 is still excessive. And if it be argued that line 1 
may have been inscribed, like a caption, in larger (hence fewer) 
letters than the rest, the spread still remains excessive between 
42 letters in line 4 and 53 letters in line 7. 

(b) The lacuna of line 4. K[a't]u 'tOUC; UJ,LVOUC;? was proposed 
by Boeckh and explained as signifying "inter ipsos hymnos 
cantatos." Sokolowski proposed K[a1 J,LE't]U 'tOUC; UJ,LVOUC;, alsore­
ferring to "Ie chant des hymnes [qui] fait partie du programme 
des fetes." As Jacottet saw (supra n.l: 150 n.1), the intrusive Kat 
makes Sokolowski's restoration "impossible syntaxiquement." 
Remarking that none of the proposed restorations is "pleine­
ment satisfaisant," Jacottet also rejects Boeckh's ("la plus evi­
dente epigraphiquement") because "l'explication selon laquelle 
la liberation avait ete annoncee par les oracles de Dionysos me 
parait difficilement acceptable." Jacottet neglects to mention 
that it was T. Reinach who, citing Hesychius, suggested that 



LEWIS, NAPHTALI, The "Ivy of Liberation" Inscription , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 
31:2 (1990:Summer) p.197 

NAPHT ALI LEWIS 199 

UJ.1VOUC; here referred to oracles 3-and, we may add, not neces­
sarily oracles of Dionysus. 

While the matter is perhaps incapable of settlement on 
present evidence, it deserves to be noted that UJ.lvou<; in this 
context is likelier not to refer to the ritual songs, and that for the 
following reason. After the statement that the garrison departed 
on the day of the Dionysiac procession, a further specification 
that the departure occurred at a particular moment of the cere­
mony is immaterial and would sound strained, to say the least. 
It is time, I think, to take Reinach's suggestion more seriously. 

(c) The lacunae of lines 8-9. Major lacunae are postulated at 
the end of line 8, at the beginning of line 9, and at the end of line 
9-places where, presumably, Cyriacus found the stone either 
broken or illegible. But it is surely an abnormal pattern of 
damage that is here postulated. Normally such damage in con­
secutive lines is found in the same position on the stone, i.e. , on 
the right side, on the left side, or in the middle. A rearrange­
ment of the text that takes this point into consideration is 
offered below. 

[A.u~£'iv ... bTl J.1ocriou]: Boeckh's long restoration, as it is not 
guaranteed by formulaic language, has virtually no chance of 
rep rod ucing the ipsissima verba of the original. It does, 
however, provide an acceptable sense, and that no doubt 
explains why it has found general acceptance during the century 
and a half since Boeckh (see Ed] infra). 

Dittenberger's restoration ['tOY 'tu, .. ti]uv has never been 
challenged, doubtless because it, too, suits the context well. The 
later insertion of EV apXlll QV'tu has been commented on in (a) 
supra. 

(d) The meaning of lines 8-10. The first point to be noted is 
that Greek words denoting "and the citizens," "and to rent 
out," and "the wreaths" are all that Cyriacus read in these lines; 
all the rest is restored, and the restorations have generally been 
made without comment or explanation. Only Sokolowski 
offers (98) a word of interpretation, and what he says there is 
demonstrably wrong. "Tous les habitants doivent porter les 
couronnes," he writes-so far so good; but then he adds, "que 
l'Etat fournit a ses faits." The idea that the city provided wreaths 
gratis is acceptable for sense; we note, nevertheless, that that 

3 Hesychius: Ullvo<;·XPT1O"j.16~ j Reinach, REG 13 (1915) 201: -n s'agit d'oracles 
qui avaient annonce la delivrance du peuple d'En:trie." 



LEWIS, NAPHTALI, The "Ivy of Liberation" Inscription , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 
31:2 (1990:Summer) p.197 

200 THE "IVY OF LIBERATION" INSCRIPTION 

statement was not read on the stone but is in Boeckh's restora­
tion. And the idea that all the inhabitants were thus provided is 
controverted by (l7tOJlto8ouv u: .. , ["C]ou<; o[ u:cp]civo'U<;, an 
express statement-read on the stone, not restored-that some 
persons paid a Jlto86<; to rent their wreaths. The simplest and 
most logical reconstruction of the sense in this clause would 
appear to be that the citizens received their crowns free while 
the non-citizens had to rent theirs, i.e. pay for the use of them 
during the festival and then return them.4 

2. The Text Rearranged 

The following division of the text into lines of 25-28 letters, 
with most lines having 26 or 27, solves the problem of the 
excessive variation noted above . 

. 0 iEPru<; 't0l> Il tOvucrou 8EoOoto<; 
8E05ropou leal oi 1tOA£llapXOl. ~[co]cri­
cr'tpa'to<; TIpCO't0IlEVOU, A icrxuAO<; 'A v-

4 'tav8pi50u, 'I9al'YEv1l<; AicrxuAou 
et1ta(v)' E1tE\.5Tt TItt 1tOIl1t11t 't11tlltOvu­
crou i1 'tE <ppou[p]& anf\AeEv, 0 'tE 511110<; 
ilA.c:u9Eproe" le[a't]& 'tou<; UIlVOU<; leal 

8 'tTtV 81l1l0lepa'tiav EleOlllcra'to, 01t<O<; 
\mOIlV1llla TIt<; TtIlEpa<; 'tau't1l<; ill, E-
80~EV 't11l ~OUA11l leal 'tOOL 8i)IlCOl' cr'tE­
<pUV1l<pOPElV 'EPE'tPlEl<; mlv'ta<; 

12 leal 'tou<; EVOlleOl>v'ta<; let't'tOl> cr'tE­
<paVOV TIt l1tOIl1t11 l 't0l> Il tOvucrou . 

4 Jacottet's interpretation (supra n.l) is the same for the citizens but fuzzy 
on the apomisthoun clause: "que les citoyens re~oivent leurs couronnes au 
frais de l'Etat, et que Ie tn!sorier qui est en charge donne (en location?) les 
couronnes." For a similar distinction between citizens and others, in a 
grimmer situation, compare the following dispatch which appeared in The 
New York Times (2 October 1990): "Jerusalem, Oct. I.-The Israeli military 
announced today that it would begin distributing gas masks nationwide to 
the general public next week .... While the protective gear is being handed out 
to the Israeli public-both Arabs and Jews-free, the army said Palestinians 
would be required to buy theirs, at an unspecified price. The army argued that 
Israelis have already paid for their kits in their taxes." 

The gratuitous .~nterpretation of the clause in RE 21 (1922) 1594-"'Kranze 
... die wohl an Armere gegen geringes Entgelt ausgeliehen wurden" -has, 
happily, enjoyed condign neglect. 



LEWIS, NAPHTALI, The "Ivy of Liberation" Inscription , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 
31:2 (1990:Summer) p.197 

'tous oE 1tOAl'tas [ 
a1to}.u(a)Souv n: [ 

NAPHT ALI LEWIS 

16 av ['t]OUS cr['tEcp]&VOUS' EmxPXEcrSat oe 
Kal 'touS xopOUS [ 

201 

I t is impossible to know how to place the two remaInIng 
phrases of the text. 

How, in this rearranged text, are lines 14ff to be restored? On 
the Boeckhian pattern the sense proposed above (1. d) would 
call for something like 

'tOUS oe 1toAhas [Aa.~ElV Ol1~Ocrl<tt] 
a1toJ.u(a)Souv 'tE ['tOts aAAms 'tOY 'ta~i-] 
uv ['t]ous cr['tEcp]avous, 

"that the citizens obtain theirs at public expense and that 
the city treasurer rent out the wreaths to the others." 

But it is long past time, I suggest, to break out of this inherited 
mindset, at least to the extent of examining whether other ap­
proaches may not produce a preferable result. One such 
approach, starting from the premise that taJl{]av is but one of 
scores of alpha nouns that might have been inscribed at that 
place, could lead to a restoration or restorations along the lines 
of 

'tous oe 1tOAhuS [KOcr~EtV OroPEUV] 
an0l-J.t( a)Souv 'tE [aAAOtC; imo aacpaAEt-] 
uv ['t]ous cr['tEcp]avouc;, 

"to deck out the citizens free of charge, and to rent out 
the wreaths to others on security." 

Still other restorations are surely possible. 5 It deserves to be 
re-emphasized, however, that-especially where lacunae are of 
considerable length-in the absence of a guiding parallel no 
restoration can claim, or even hope, to recapture the original 
wording exactly. The best that can be attained is a reasonable, 
and if possible a cogent, sense. 

5 E.g. toue OE 1tOAitae [owPllSilvat 1t(lv'tae]. a1to~.Lt(e)Souv tc [aAA.ote E1tt 
Scwpi]av (note Pi. Leg. 650A: tile toU .1toVUcou Scwp{ae), or 1tpOc Cutux{]av, or 

, • ,r:t ] 
7tp<>C £UC£I-'Ct av. 



LEWIS, NAPHTALI, The "Ivy of Liberation" Inscription , Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, 
31:2 (1990:Summer) p.197 

202 THE -IVY OF LIBERATION" INSCRIPTION 

3. Reusable Ivy? 

Given the general dearth of commentary on this inscription, it 
is hardly surprising that no one has faced-at least in print-the 
implications of (x,toJ.llo9ouv 'to\><; on:q)(lvo'\)<;. 

First, the reading of the verb. Although the sigma is missing, 
whether through the stonecutter~s oversight or Cyriacus~, there 
can be little doubt that the present infinitive of &'xoJ.llo9oro, "to 
rent out, '" was intended; nothing else fits. 

What, then, does the phrase &'7toJ.l\.o9ouv 'to\><; o't£cpavo'\)<; tell 
us about these ivy wreaths? Objects that are rented-mobilia 
and immobilia alike-have, by definition, to be returned to the 
lender at the eXfiry of the rental period. Accordingly, the 
rented wreaths 0 this inscription would be returned after the 
festival. But it is hard to imagine why the city would want them 
back unless they could be used again on a later occasion. But the 
ivy, even if freshly picked for the festival of Dionysus, would 
dry out thereafter: the stems, already woody, would harden 
further, and the leaves would become sere and brittle. 6 The 
result would be an unsightly mess that no one, surely, would 
deem worthy to grace a public celebration. . 

The conclusion seems inescapable that the wreaths referred to 
in this inscription were fashioned of material that was, or was 
made, durable. Such wreaths could have been produced in 
either of two ways. Both archaeological finds and literary 
evidence assure us that floral wreaths were imitated in wood 
and metal. Alternatively, the Eretrians may have made their 
Dionysiac wreaths of real ivy and preserved them by covering 
them, while they were still fresh, with a paint or other 
substance that would seal them hermetically. 

CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK 

January, 1991 

6 My thanks to Professor Peter Stevens of the Harvard University Her­
barium for relevant technical information on ivy.