The researchers noted the good literary language of the written texts and did not rule out that their author could be a professional "pen worker"
Archaeologists have found unusual lead tablets containing the texts of ancient curses in the grave of a young woman in Greek Athens. The tablets, one of which turned out to be empty, are 2.4 thousand years old.
According to Live Science, four tablets contained the texts of curses with the names of the chthonic gods of the underworld, while the fifth was empty. According to scientists, it turned out to be empty because the curse was pronounced over it orally. All five tablets were pierced and fastened with an iron nail and placed in the grave. This is how the curses had to get to the higher powers, which would send them to their destination.
The texts of the curses were addressed to the husband and wife - the owners of the tavern - Demetrius and Phanagora. “I direct my hatred towards Demetrius and Phanagora, their tavern and their property. I will bind my enemies, Demetrius and Phanagora, with blood and dust to the world of the dead,”reads the text of one of the tablets. The curse also promised to send kynotos into the language of Demetrius, which literally means "dog's ear". In ancient Greece, this was the name for the minimum (unlucky) combination in the game of dice. According to Jessica Lamont, a professor at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, this is due to the widespread use of gambling "and other questionable activities" in Athenian taverns.
Photo: livescience.com
According to Lamont, the woman buried in the grave could not have had anything to do with the tablets - the curses were simply passed on with her. The researchers also noted the good literary language of the written texts and did not rule out that their author could be a professional "pen worker".
Alexander Kornev
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