244:, but the exact interpretation is unclear. B. Powell has argued that the final characters may represent a garbled snippet from the middle of an abecedarium (ΚΛΜΝ) by a second hand, someone learning to write. More recently, N. M. Binek has shown that the last six markings can "be viewed not as letters or as attempts to inscribe letters, but rather as decorative elements fashioned by a second inscriber in accordance with the principles of Geometric idiom", inasmuch as the segment roughly mirrors the shapes of letters 9-4 (ΧΡΟΝΥΝ). The text marks the vessel as a prize in a dancing competition. It is translated as: "whoever of the dancers now dances most lightly
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222:. For example, the Greek letter zeta (Ζ) resembles the Phoenician letter zayin (I). The text is written from right to left, with the individual letters mirror-shaped in comparison with the modern forms. It is placed in a circle around the shoulder of the vessel. The text consists of 46 characters, of which the first 35 can easily be read as a
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is the oldest known alphabetic Greek inscription. The Nestor Cup, which also bears a verse inscription, was found in an excavation at the ancient Greek colony of
Pithekoussai, on the island of
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This corresponds to the following in the later classical orthography in Greek (using the Ionian form of the Greek alphabet), with the metric feet of the hexameter indicated:
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Dipylon oenochoe (left), on display in the
National Archaeological Museum, Athens. The inscription is scratched into the dark band around the shoulder of the vase.
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Powell, B. (1988), "The
Dipylon Oinochoe Inscription and the Spread of Literacy in 8th Century Athens",
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454:(in Greek), Athens: Elliniko Logotechniko kai Istoriko Archeio, pp. 360–379
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Binek, N. M. (2017), "The
Dipylon Oinochoe Graffito: Text or Decoration?",
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Kontogiannis, A. (1999), "Η γραφή", in
Kopidakis, M. Z. (ed.),
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In modern scholarly editions, this is sometimes transcribed as:
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Transcription of
Dipylon Oinochoe Inscription (Powell, 1988)
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It is believed that either the
Dipylon inscription or the
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Whoever of all these dancers now plays most delicately,
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307:ὃς νῦν | ὀρχη|στῶν πάν|των ἀτα|λώτατα | παίζει
283:ΗΟΣΝΥΝΟΡΧΕΣΤΟΝΠΑΝΤΟΝΑΤΑΛΟΤΑΤΑΠΑΙΖΕΙΤΟΤΟΔΕΚΛΜΙΝ
214:The text is written in an archaic form of the
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259:...(h)ος νῦν ὀρχεστôν πάντον ἀταλό(τατα)...
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252:he shall get this (vessel as his prize)".
89:
69:Learn how and when to remove this message
293:ὸς νῦν ὀρχεστôν πάντον ἀταλότατα παίζει,
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204:National Archaeological Museum of Athens
32:This article includes a list of general
978:National Archaeological Museum, Athens
973:Earliest known manuscripts by language
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988:Archaeological discoveries in Attica
198:. The jug is attributed to the Late
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279:The text of the inscription runs:
267:... ἀταλότατα παίζει, τô τόδε ...
38:it lacks sufficient corresponding
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829:Group of Aphrodite, Pan and Eros
756:Funerary naiskos of Aristonautes
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993:1871 archaeological discoveries
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202:(750–700 BC). It is now in the
953:Individual ancient Greek vases
517:National Archaeological Museum
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180:. The text is scratched on an
165:is a short text written on an
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761:Funerary Stela of Demokleides
452:Ιστορία της ελληνικης γλώσσας
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353:History of the Greek alphabet
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384:Binek, 2017, pp. 423, 430-31
16:c. 740 BCE Greek inscription
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983:8th-century BC inscriptions
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322:of him this (sc. pot)...
169:pottery vessel dated to
834:Heracles of Antikythera
771:Great Eleusinian Relief
615:Grave stelai of Mycenae
597:Wall Paintings of Thera
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53:more precise citations.
673:Dedication of Nikandre
515:Major exhibits at the
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887:Aphrodite of Syracuse
819:Antikythera mechanism
766:Grave Stele of Hegeso
592:Akrotiri Boxer Fresco
476:Epigraphical database
471:Online text and image
467:Bibliotheca Augustana
315:Literal translation:
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839:Jockey of Artemision
683:Dipylon inscription
220:Phoenician alphabet
163:Dipylon inscription
84:Dipylon inscription
963:Greek inscriptions
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854:Mithridates relief
801:Xenokrateia Relief
751:Antikythera Ephebe
574:Spool-shaped pyxis
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295:τô τόδε κλμιν
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781:Marathon Boy
718:Pitsa panels
703:Lemnos stele
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640:Warrior Vase
635:Theseus Ring
630:Nestor's Cup
569:Frying pan 2
564:Frying pan 1
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333:Nestor's Cup
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327:Nestor's cup
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309:τοῦ τόδε ...
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206:(inv. 192).
188:Dipylon Gate
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811:Hellenistic
480:Online text
51:introducing
942:Categories
907:Diadumenos
364:References
224:hexametric
192:Kerameikos
122:Discovered
34:references
824:Aristonoe
743:Classical
607:Mycenaean
529:Neolithic
443:163184669
429:: 65–86,
414:189516351
232:distichon
226:verse in
556:Cycladic
469:corpus:
394:Hesperia
347:See also
239:Wikidata
183:oenochoe
101:Material
59:May 2013
668:Daidala
650:Archaic
111:Created
47:improve
786:Myrtis
584:Minoan
521:Athens
441:
423:Kadmos
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337:Ischia
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196:Athens
154:Greece
150:Attica
146:Athens
136:Greece
132:Attica
128:Athens
117:740 BC
36:, but
879:Roman
439:S2CID
410:S2CID
341:Italy
339:, in
241:]
237:[
228:Greek
210:Text
161:The
125:1871
105:Clay
519:of
431:doi
402:doi
194:in
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