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August 3, 2007
A Broken Text for a Broken Horse
Continuing with the veterinary text, KTU 1.85, the next section, lines 20-22, is mostly unreadable because here the tablet is badly broken. Only a few letters in lines 21 and 22 are readable and the first word and perhaps more of the symptom in line 20 is broken away.
What is readable of lines 20-22 appears to be part of a typical section following the structure that is common to the previous eight sections of the text. Like several other sections of the text, line 20 begins w . k . ("and when"). But the actual symptom is unreadable and unreconstructible. It ends with the letters bd, which are just before the word śśw (horse). So we can be sure that the horse is sick but what the aliment is is unreadable. Part of the first portion of the preparation statement (Yes, I know I have been inconsistent in what I call this part of each section) can be read in line 20: gd . ḫlb, "(coriander [?] of the hill country" or "coriander [?] from Aleppo"). gd (or perhaps gr) also appears in line 25. Pardee, 64, n 235, understands gd as cognate with Hebrew גד and its Aramaic equivalent. Pardee, 64-65, does not completely exclude the possibility that it might mean "saffron." But it is certain, based on the very few letters that are readable in line 21 that at least two and perhaps three components are to be "crushed" together. What the other components are is not readable. And the section clearly ends with the immortal words, "And (one) pours it into its nose."
If you're wondering why I didn't go ahead post on the next five badly broken lines at this time, I have two excuses. First, unlike lines 20-22, lines 23 to 27 can be largely reconstructed and the section appears to continue through line 29 (lines 28 and 29 are readable). However, when taken with lines 20-22, this section would make a longer post than I've wanted when discussing this text. Second, I have changed my mind eight or nine times over how to understand lines 23-29. I now am of two firmly held and contradictory opinions. I hope I can recover from the rather focused "schizophrenia" before the weekend is over.
Reference:
Posted by Duane Smith at August 3, 2007 11:42 AM | Read more on Ugarit |
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Comments
I just want to say that I understand absolutely none of what you're saying (but that's my shame, not yours). It's great that you're contributing this highly technical information about an ancient language and I'm learning little by little as I follow you.
It's funny that you run into the same sorts of issues in translation that I come across when I tackle Etruscan, Lemnian or Eteo-Cypriot on my own. These are very different languages from Ugaritic, of course, but exactly the same dilemmas.
And I like your wording: "schizophrenia". That's about it. Trying to juggle various ideas of your own with opinions from other scholars in your head, sometimes not knowing what is right anymore. Yep, I know that feeling. But that's why I love double-shot americanos. Mmmmm. Caffeine.
Posted by: Glen Gordon at August 4, 2007 3:33 PM
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