167-174, figs. 4-5 (ph., dr.) (ed. pr.) |
SEG 62 (2012): 1667
CIIP IV.2 (2018): 3753 (ph., dr.)
Incised on the northwestern wall, facing the entrance.
A one-line inscription is incised into the north-western wall of the cistern. It features Greek letters of the round alphabet with fat bases, and measures 2.1 m in length. The letter height ranges from 0.34 m at the beginning to 0.15 m at the end.
Above the inscription is a small, barely vis-ible depiction of a man with a raised right handstanding in a boat, perhaps preaching. Since this depiction is located on the seam between the upper layer of hard limestone and the lower layer of soft limestone, the boat’s keel and rudder were carved in the soft rock, while its top part was drawn in charcoal. An incised Latin cross can be seen underneath the inscription, styled as a chi rho (the vertical bar of the cross comprises the rho) or as an iota-chi monogram. The cross is enclosed by a medallion measuring 0.81 m in diameter.
☩ Ἰεσοῦς ὅδε.
Jesus (is) here.
Ἰ⟨η⟩σοῦς ⟨ὧ⟩δε edd.pr.
Christian acclamation incised on the northwestern wall.
Dated to 7th/8th cent. on the basis of the letter forms by edd.pr., who consider the possibility that the inscription besides expressing spiritual proximity to Jesus has an apotropaic meaning. The cistern apparently served as a hermitage in its second phase.