1938

BY

In publishing three pithoi from the Bamboula in A.J.A., 1938, pp.272 ff.,figs. 8, 13 a-c, I suggested that the bisyllabic word inscribed on their rims might be read as Kuri, an early form of the name of the city Kourion. It was, however, difficult to explain why the name of the city should be inscribed on ordinary storage ware in private houses. A new interpretation suggests itself, overcoming this difficulty and fulfilling previously unnoticed demands of the archaeological evidence.

The inscribed pots have flat bases, full bodies with two vertical handles on the shoulder, and wide necks with rounded overhanging rims. They appear to have been made on a slow wheel. They were inscribed either after baking or when the clay was leather-hard. Pithos a is 0.62 high and has a diameter of 0.54; pithos b is 0.59 high and 0.56 in diameter. Only the neck and shoulder of c are preserved; the mouth has a diameter of 0.338.

They were sunk into the ground with their necks protruding two or three inches above the floor, and were used for storage, probably of oil. A similar pot appears in situ in fig. 12 of my earlier article. Fig. 1 shows pithos b as it was found, broken, in its pit in room 12. The cross marks a thin slab of limestone which served as a lid. Several such pithos lids were found during the excavations; one of these had a hole in the center for attaching a wooden handle. All three inscriptions (fig. 2) are on the upper outer face of the rounded lip, where they were clearly visible to anyone bending over the jar. This is an unusual position for inscriptions, and we shall see that it has a direct connection with their meaning.

Handwritten marginal note, upper right: "pl. vogel"?

Handwritten, lower left, diagonal: "Revised version"