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Papyrus Fragments Collection
An inventory of the collection at Syracuse University
Finding aid created by: Michele Combs
Date: 28 May 2026
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| Return to finding aids search |
Finding aid created by: Michele Combs
Date: 28 May 2026
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|
|
Overview of the Collection |
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| Title: | Papyrus Fragments Collection |
| 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 |
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.
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.
No particular order.
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.
Subjects
Manuscripts (Papyri) -- Specimens.
Manuscripts, Greek (Papyri) --
Specimens.
Places
Egypt -- History.
Middle East--History, Ancient.
Genres and Forms
Papyri (manuscripts)
Preferred Citation
Preferred citation for this material is as follows:
Papyrus Fragments Collection,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries
Acquisition Information
Unknown.
Papyrus fragments
| 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. | |||||||||||