P.Berol. inv. 9875 col. v coronis
<p>Detail of P.Berol. inv. 9875 col. v (late fourth or early third century BCE), showing the coronis at the beginning of the "<em><a title="Mating plug" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mating_plug">sphragis</a></em>" in the&nbsp;<em>Persae</em>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a title="Timotheus of Miletus" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timotheus_of_Miletus">Timotheus of Miletus</a>.</p>
Detail map of Giza Governorate, Egypt Overview map of Giza Governorate, Egypt

A: Giza Governorate, Egypt

A Papyrus Fragment of Timotheus, Probably the Earliest Surviving Papyrus of a Greek Text

Circa 350 BCE

A papyrus fragment of The Persae by the Greek musician and dithyrambic poet, Timotheus (Timotheos) of Miletus, discovered in Abusir, Egypt, is probably the earliest surviving papyrus of a Greek text found in Egypt. It is preserved in the Staatliches Museum, Berlin (P. Berol. 9875).

The text was first edited and published by Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Möllendorff as Timotheos, Die Perser, aus einem Papyrus von Abusir im Aufrage der deutschen Orientgesellschaft (1903).

Morison, Politics and Script. . . . Barker ed. (1972) 11, pl. 8 describes the Greek writing on the papyrus as "Formal book-script; square; monoline; unserifed."

Timeline Themes