Collection inventory

Overview of the Collection
Title:	Papyrus Fragments Collection
Inclusive Dates:	2nd century CE
Quantity:	2 items
Abstract:	Two papyrus fragments
Language:	Ancient Greek and Demotic
Repository:	Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Libraries 222 Waverly Ave., Suite 600 Syracuse, NY 13244-2010 https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center/university-archives

Biographical History

Papyrus was an early form of writing support made from the pith of Cyperus papyrus, a wetland plant plentiful in ancient times across the Nile Delta. Sheets could be made or cut to size; for lengthy documents, pieces of papyrus would be attached to one another and rolled into scrolls. Scribes used reed brushes or pens; the most common inks were carbon black and a reddish ochre derived from iron oxide. Other colors, including blue, green, black, white, red and yellow, appear in illustrations. Papyrus was used for all types of content - legal, financial, literary, religious, etc.

Archaeological evidence dates the manufacture of papyrus to as early as 2550 BCE. The material was in widespread use for millennia, being highly stable and rot-resistant in the dry climate of the region. Beginning in the 5th century BCE papyrus was gradually replaced by parchment (made from animal skins), and it had largely faded from use by the 4th century CE. Other uses of the plant, however, such as making baskets, ropes, thatched ceilings, sandals, and other objects continue today.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Papyrus Fragments Collection contains two pieces of papyrus with text but no illustrations. One is written in Greek, the other in Demotic Egyptian. Both date from around the second century CE.

Special Collections Research Center extends its thanks to Dr. Ann-Katrin Gill at the Georg Steindorff Egyptian Museum at the Universität Leipzig for her assistance in dating and describing these items.

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Arrangement of the Collection

No particular order.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advance notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

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Subject Headings

Subjects

Places

Genres and Forms

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Papyrus Fragments Collection,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Unknown.

Finding Aid Information

Created by: Michele Combs
Date: 28 May 2026
Revision history:

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Inventory

	Papyrus fragments
Oversize 1		Fragment 1 circa 200 CE - in Greek; accounts of wheat payments
			The recto has the number 298 as a heading; this means that the sheet was glued together with at least 297 other identical documents to form a scroll. It is therefore sheet 298 from a τόμος συγκολλήσιμος (tomos synkollesimos), a roll formed of glued-together pieces. The cross is the abbreviation for σιτoσ (sitos), grain or corn. On the verso, the heading appears to be a large gamma Γ with a dot underneath; this would actually be an abbreviation for γόμοι (gómoi), burdens or cargo. The text is also about wheat. At the beginning (and also further down) is the abbreviation for σιτόλογος (sitólogos), director of the granary: a large sigma with an iota running through its horizontal line, so that it almost looks like a cross.
Oversize 1		Fragment 2 circa 200 CE - in Demotic Egyptian; contents unknown
			Demotic is a simplified form of ancient Egyptian hieratic writing, used from the 7th century BCE to about the 5th century CE. The text is extremely faded and difficult to read, and the beginning is missing.

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