Agrippa’s Retention of Power
(0138) Text: l qḥs² bn s²mt bn zkr w ḥll h[…] dr s¹nt ngy grfṣ
Translation: By Qhs son of Smt son of Zkr and he camped here in the year that Agrippa retained power.
Commentary: It is not clear what event or even which Agrippa this Safaitic inscription refers to. If it refers to Agrippa I, it would be the year he was in conflict with his uncle Antipas (39 CE); if Agrippa II, it would probably be sometime during the Judaean War (66-70 CE). See similar dating by Agrippa’s military might in §141, §142, §143, §146. The inscription is in Safaitic and so the text is rendered here in transliteration instead of transcription, given difficulties in reproducing the latter (e.g., use of boustrephedon, non-standard characters).
Provenience: stateless desert region (near Wadi Umm Khinyṣri, Jordan – Ruwaishid Distict of Mufraq Governorate) 39 CE or 66-70 CE
Bibliography: OCIANA #0032319*