City of the Sharp-Nosed Fish: Greek Lives in Roman Egypt by Parsons Peter

Author:Parsons, Peter [Parsons, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781780225302
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Published: 2012-10-18T00:00:00+00:00

What begins as consolation ends with a copy of a document relevant to the quarrel with Chairemon. The recipient is an influential man, a former strategos and gymnasiarch.45

The letters of recommendation represent friendship in its most concrete aspect.46 ‘God willing, I hope to live frugally and get transferred to a cohort. However, nothing will happen here without money; letters of recommendation will have no effect unless one helps oneself,’ commented a Roman soldier, serving with the Alexandrian fleet.47 But this disillusion simply shows how central such letters were to success within the network. Often the letter goes with the person recommended. It might serve simply to introduce him. ‘Theon to his most honoured Tyrannos, very many greetings. Herakleides, who delivers this letter to you, is my brother. Therefore I ask you with all my strength to regard him as introduced to you. I asked [your?] brother Hermias too in writing to give you an account of him. You will do me the greatest kindness if he obtains your favourable notice. Before all else I pray that you enjoy good health and the best success free from the evil eye. Goodbye!’48 It might ask a favour for him, however self-interestedly. ‘To my lord brother Heras, Ammonios the centurion, greetings. Ph[ ], who delivers my letter to you, is at present a tenant farmer of mine. He says he has been nominated to public service in the village of Dositheou, i.e. to the levy of tunics and cloaks, but has not yet been entrusted with the levy. So exert yourself, brother, to rescue him from this service; and also to give him your favourable attention, doing me a great kindness in this, and furthermore in the future also not to allow the villagers to injure him in other things or to nominate him to other services: let him testify to me what has been made available to him by your good will. I pray for your health for many years, my lord brother.’49 Ammonios was a centurion, Heras governor of his district: officer and official could do business.

Here too, no doubt, there were model letters to be imitated. Certainly such letters written in the Christian age, as brothers and sisters wandered from one community to another, followed a fairly set pattern. ‘To our beloved brothers and fellow ministers in each place. Welcome in peace our daughter Germania, who is in need of help, when she arrives with you! Through her I and those with me greet you and those with you. Emmanuel! 99. I pray for your good health in the Lord, beloved brothers.’50 (‘99’ means ‘Amen’, a Christian cryptogram dating back to times of persecution.)51 Such letters might develop into a chain. One recommender added, ‘and if you can, don’t delay to write to the others about them, so that they welcome them at each place’.52

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