Cession of Land

Date

• 183

Summary

• Date: November 27, 183 CE.
• Place of origin: Oxyrhynchos.
• Summary: The papyrus concerns the cession of 9 17/96 arouras of land and belongs to the extensive category dealing with the conveyance of landed property. Sarapion sells to Zoilos half of his landed property, consisting of two plots, which he has inherited from his mother. This Zoilos is related to Sarapion (viz. the son of his grandfather's brother). This explains the peculiarity that the cedens' grandfather is also mentioned in the hypograph and, secondly that no neighbors are mentioned at all in connection with the first plot of land and that the neighbor in the north is not mentioned in connection with the second plot, because the first plot is completely bounded by Zoilos's property and the second is bounded in the north by his property. Finally, it provides us with an explanation for the koinonikai arourae mentioned in lines 9/10, these being arouras that are the common property of Sarapion and Zoilos.
• Notes: Zoilos is related to Sarapion. Zoilos may already be an old man when this was written. The papyrus employs customary formulae of this kind of document. Line 20 is of difficult restoration and line 38 is difficult to read.
• Condition of recto: A light-brown papyrus, regularly cut off at the left and right-hand sides. At the top there is a margin of 2 cm., at the left-hand side one of 2 cm. and at the bottom one of 5.5 cm. At the right-hand side the lines run up to the edge. Four horizontal folds and one vertical one are still visible. The papyrus, whose text has faded in several places, is mutilated by holes.
• Hands recto: The first hand is very skilled, the second clumsy. The text runs parallel with the fibers. A certain distance is left between the lines and the beginning of a new section is sometimes indicated by means of a space. Four horizontal folds and one vertical one are still visible
• Description, notes, transcription, and translation written by P. J. Sijpesteijn.