KYP T-1368

KYPRIANOS DATABASE OF ANCIENT RITUAL TEXTS

KYPRIANOS T1368

Manuscript:	M167
Sigla:	P. Macq. I 1 P. Macq. inv. 375
Text no. Position of the text within the manuscript.	17
Coptic Scriptorium:
Date:	601 – 800

Text position:	p. 14 ll. 10-13
Type of text:	Curse of sickness (magical, formulary)

Original title:	ⲓ̅ⲉ̅ · ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲕⲗⲏⲧⲓⲕⲟⲛ
Original title (translated):	15: Charm
Conventional title:	To make someone sick

Language:	Egyptian (Coptic)
Dialect:	Sahidic
Script:	Coptic
Image:

Text:	Translation:
p. 14 10. ⲓ̅ⲉ̅ · ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲕⲗⲏⲧⲓⲕⲟⲛ · ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟ ⲉϥϣⲏϣ ⲏ 11. ☾ ⲏ ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟ ⲉⲩⲡⲉⲣⲥⲧⲉⲣⲉⲱⲙⲁ · ⲃ-ⲟ · ⲕⲁⲁⲥ 12. ϩⲓⲣⲙ ⲡⲉϥⲣⲟ · ⲉⲕⲟⲩⲱϣ · ⲧⲉϥ·⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟⲟ ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟ 13. ⲉⲩⲙⲟⲟⲩ · ϫⲟⲕⲙⲉϥ̅ ·	[10] 15. Curse to strike down with sickness. ⟨The⟩ formula ⟨to⟩ sun when it is humbled, or [11] ⟨to⟩ the moon, or ⟨the⟩ formula to some vervain plant. Place it [12] at his door. If you want him to recover: ⟨the⟩ formula [13] to water. Wash him.

Tableau:
Tracing by:

Apparatus:

10. ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲕⲗⲏⲧⲓⲕⲟⲛ i.e. Greek κατακλιτικόν : i.e. Greek κατακλητικόν Choat/Gardner | ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟ l. ⲗⲟ(ⲅⲟⲥ) i.e. Greek λόγος | i.e. Greek ἡμέρα : ☾ i.e. ⲟⲟϩ Gardner/Choat | ⲏ i.e. Greek ἤ
11. ☾ l. ⲟⲟϩ : ⲥⲥ Choat/Gardner | ⲏ i.e. Greek ἤ | ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟ l. ⲗⲟ(ⲅⲟⲥ) i.e. Greek λόγος | ⲡⲉⲣⲥⲧⲉⲣⲉⲱⲙⲁ i.e. Greek περιστέριον | ⲃ-ⲟ l. ⲃⲟ(ⲧⲁⲛⲏ) i.e. Greek βοτάνη
12. ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟⲟ l. ⲗⲟ corrected from ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟ by addition of omicron ? | ⧹ⲗ⧸ⲟ l. ⲗⲟ(ⲅⲟⲥ) i.e. Greek λόγος : translate “say the formula twice” ? Choat/Gardner
13. ϫⲟⲕⲙⲉϥ i.e. Sahidic ϫⲉⲕⲙ⸗ϥ̅

Notes:

10. ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲕⲗⲏⲧⲓⲕⲟⲛ As noted by Choat/Gardner, this word could be understood either as κατακλητικόν, a ritual for attracting customers to a shop, or as a mispelling of κατακλιτικόν, a ritual for striking down with sickness; the former appears in PGM IV.2373 (KYP M3/T2409), and the latter (partly damaged) in PGM VII.430 (KYP M156/T2654). The word κατακλητικόν, an alternative spelling of κατακλιτικόν, is found in another curse in SM 97.7-9 (KYP M840/T2690). Since this ritual involves burying something at someone’s door (typical of curses and love spells), and the option of healing someone (the victim?) afterwards, we opt for the second possibility here.
10-11. ⲉϥϣⲏϣ ⲏ ☾ ⲏ Choat/Gardner translate “when the moon (?) is equal (i.e. at half-moon?) or (when equal again?)”. Crum CD 606a suggests ϣⲏϣ as the qualitative of ϣⲱϣ “to make equal”, with the translation “full” in relation to the moon, but this seems unlikely; the usual way to express the moon being full is using ⲙⲟⲩϩ, and in the passage cited by Crum (Berlin P. 8109 recto l. 18, KYP M174/T1499) the moon is both ⲙⲟⲩϩ and ϣⲏϣ, suggesting that they must be two different things; a further description of the sun being ϣⲏϣ (ⲉⲣⲉⲡⲣⲉ ϣⲏϣ) occurs in the curse Cairo JdE 42573 l. 19 (M44/T1677); here “full” does not seem to be the correct translation. Here we translate “humbled”, understanding it as the qualitative of ⲥⲱϣ “to be despised, humbled” (Crum CD 375a). We understand this to refer to an astrological phenomenon, perhaps specifically the ταπείνωμα (“depression” or “dejection”, literally “making humble”), which occurs when a planet is in the zodiacal sign opposite its exaltation; for the sun this is in Libra (late September to early October).

Bibliography:

Choat, Malcolm, and Iain Gardner. A Coptic handbook of ritual power (p. Macq. I 1). Turnhout: Brepols, 2013, p. 70-71.

Editor:

EL’s edition (6/3/2020), from DDGLC’s transcription based on Choat/Gardner (14/10/2019), checked with photograph of original (EL 6/3/2020); Team (19/7/2021)

How to cite:

Korshi Dosoo, Edward O.D. Love & Markéta Preininger (chief editors). "KYP T1368: To make someone sick," Kyprianos Database of Ancient Ritual Texts and Objects, www.coptic-magic.phil.uni-wuerzburg.de/index.php/text/kyp-t-1368. Accessed on 04/05/2024

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