Tanais, Gorgippia, and Hermonassa
These three short Greek inscriptions belong to the Bosporan and north Black Sea world under kings named Sauromates. They preserve Theos Hypsistos association life at Tanais, a Theos Hypsistos freeing or vow formula at Gorgippia, and a royal building dedication to Aphrodite Apatourias at Hermonassa.
The stones are damaged. Broken names and lost clauses remain visibly broken in the translation.
The English is a Good Works Translation from the Greek inscriptions printed below.
Translation
Tanais -- Synod of Theos Hypsistos under Sauromates
To God Most High. With good fortune.
In the reign of King Tiberius Julius Sauromates, friend of Caesar and friend of the Romans, pious:
The synod around the priest Julius son of Ralchados, and the father of the synod Chorouathos [...], and the synagogos Ardarakos son of Synegdemos, and the philagathos Diaios son of Kerdonakos, and the assistant philagathos [...] son of Forgabakos, and the neaniskarch Demetrios son of Apollonios, and the gymnasiarch Basileides son of Theoneikos, and Attas son of Herakleides, friend of the synod, and the remaining thiasitai:
Ardarakos son of Zia[...]; Demetrios son of [...]; Leimanos son of Phidas; Midachos [...] son of [...]; Asklepiades son of Valerios; [...]godanos son of Demetrios; Menestratos son of Lykiskos; [...]ikachos; Diophantos son of Deios; Poplios [...]; Herakleides son of Epigonos; Iardo[...] son of Demetrios; Aphrodeisios son of Chryseros; Phaldaranos son of Apollonios; Philippos son of [...]; Kalous son of Athenios; Kopharnos [...]; Tryphon son of Andromenes; [...] son of Chorouathos; Theoteimos son of Psycharion; [...]dibalos son of Pharnakes; Euios son of Rhodon; Herakleides son of Attas; [...] son of Aristodemos; Symmachos son of Sa[...]; and the remaining names now broken on the stone.
In the [...] year and in the month Loos [...]
Gorgippia -- Theos Hypsistos Dedication under Sauromates
To God Most High, Almighty, blessed.
In the reign of King Tiberius Julius Sauromates, friend of Caesar and friend of the Romans, pious:
Timotheos son of Nymphagoros Makarios, together with his sister Helis, wife of Nanobalamyros, according to the vow of our father Nymphagoros Makarios, set free our foster-child Dorea [...]
Hermonassa -- Aphrodite Apatourias Stoa Dedication
Tiberius Julius King Sauromates, friend of Caesar and friend of the Romans, pious, high priest of the Augusti for life, [...] restored from the foundations the covered stoas around the temple, which had been destroyed by time, and consecrated them to Aphrodite Apatourias through the care of [...] the official over sacred matters, in the year 402.
Colophon
This Good Works Translation was made from three Ancient Greek inscriptions preserved in the local Scythian expansion source base: PH184019 / CIRB 1277 from Tanais, PH183861 / CIRB 1125 from Gorgippia, and PH183778 / CIRB 1045 from Hermonassa.
The English translation is independently derived from the Greek source body. Damaged and restored portions have been translated only where the preserved wording permits a coherent English rendering.
Compiled for the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: Greek
### Tanais Theos Hypsistos Synod Under Sauromates
1 Θεῷ Ὑψί̣σ̣τῳ. ἀγαθῆι τύχηι.
βασιλεύοντος βασιλέως ∙ Τιβ(ερίου) ∙ Ἰουλ(ίου) ∙ Σαυρομάτου
φιλοκαίσαρ[ος κα]ὶ φιλο[ρ]ωμαίου, εὐσεβοῦς, ἡ σύνοδος
ἡ περὶ ∙ ἱ[ερέα Ἰού]λ̣ιον̣ Ῥ̣αλ̣χάδου καὶ πατέρα σ[υ]νόδου
5 Χορούαθ̣[ον — —]ο[— —] καὶ συναγωγὸν Ἀρδά[ρα]κον
[Σ]υ̣νεγδήμ̣[ου καὶ φιλ]ά̣γ[αθ]ον Δίαι[ο]ν̣ Κ̣ε̣ρ̣δ̣ω̣ν̣άκο̣υ̣? καὶ
[π]αραφιλάγαθο̣[ν — — —]ιον Φοργαβάκ̣[ου] καὶ [νεα]ν̣ισ-
[κ]ά̣ρχην Δημήτ̣[ριον Ἀπο]λ̣λωνίου καὶ γυμ[ν]ασιά[ρχην] Βα-
[σι]λείδ̣ην Θεον̣[είκ]ο[υ καὶ Ἄ]τ̣τα̣ν Ἡρακλείδου φίλο̣[ν]? τ̣ῆ̣ς
10 [συ]ν̣όδου [καὶ] οἱ λο̣[ιπο]ὶ [θια]σῖτ̣αι· Ἀρδά̣ρα̣κος Ζια̣-
[— —]ου, Δη[μήτ]ριος [— — —]ου, Λείμανος Φίδ̣α̣,
[Μί]δαχ̣ο̣ς? [— — —]άνου, Ἀ[σκ]ληπιάδης Οὐαλε̣[ρ]ί̣ου,
[․․]γ?όδαν[ο]ς [Δημητ?]ρίου, [Μ]ενέστρατος Λυκίσ[κο]υ
[— — —]ικάχο[υ], Διό̣φαντ[ος] Δείου, Πόπλ[ιο]ς
15 [— — — —]δα, Ἡρακλείδ[ης] Ἐπιγόνου, Ἰα̣ρ̣δο-
[— — — — Δ]η̣μητρίου, Ἀ[φ]ροδείσιος Χρυσέ-
[ρωτος, Φαλ]δά[ρα]νος Ἀπολλωνίου, Φίλιπ-
[πος — — — —]ν̣ο[υ], Καλοῦς Ἀθηνίου, Κόφαρνος
[— — — — — — — — — Τ]ρ̣ύφων Ἀνδρομ[έν]ους,
20 ο̣[— — — — — —] Χοροάθου, Θεότειμος Ψυχα-
ρίων̣[ος, — —]δίβαλος Φαρ[νάκου], Ε̣ὔιος Ῥό-
δων[ος, Ἡρα]κλείδης Ἄττ̣[α, — — — — Ἀρισ]-
τοδ[ήμου, Σ]ύ̣μ̣μ̣αχος Σα[— — — — — — — —]
κος [— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —]
25 φιλο[— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —]
ορανσ̣[— — — Ζωρθῖ?]ν̣ος Βε[λλικοῦ? — — —]
Ῥ̣α̣δάμ̣[ειστος? — —] Φαδινά[μου — — — — —]
Μύ̣ρ̣[ων? — — — — —] Μαστοῦ̣ [— — — — —]
πο[— — — — — — — —]ος Ἀρδα[ράκου? — — —]
30 Φιδ[α— — — — — — —]νος̣ Χαρί[των — — — Ἀ]-
ράθι[— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —]
vacat
32 ἐν τ[ῶι — — ἔτει καὶ μη]νὶ Λῴ̣[ωι — — — — —]
### Gorgippia Theos Hypsistos Dedication under Sauromates
### PH183861 / CIRB 1125
*Gorgippia, 93-124 AD, dedication to Theos Hypsistos under Tiberius Julius Sauromates. PHI context: N. Black Sea -- Gorgippia (Anapa) -- 93-124 AD -- IosPE II 401.*
[Θεῷ Ὑψ]ίστ̣[ῳ παν]-
[τοκράτ]ορι εὐλογ̣[η]-
[τ]ῷ, βασιλεύοντ̣ο̣[ς]
βασιλέως Τιβερίου Ἰ〚ω〛-
ουλίου {²⁶Ἰουλίου}²⁶ 〚λιου〛 Σαυρομά-
του, φιλοκαίσαρος κ<α>ὶ φι-
λορωμ<α>ίου, εὐσεβοῦς,
Τειμόθεος Νυμφα-
γόρου Μακαρίου σὺν
ἀδελφῆς Ἤλιδος, γυ-
ναικὸς Νανοβαλα-
μύρου κατὰ εὐχὴν
πατρὸς ἡμῶν Νυμ-
φαγόρου Μακαρίου
ἀφείομεν τὴν θρεπ-
[τὴν ἡμῶν Δ]ω̣ρέαν
[ἐλευθέραν — — —]
### Hermonassa Aphrodite Apatourias Stoa Dedication
*Ancient Greek source text from PHI Greek Inscriptions, CIRB 1045 / PH183778. Presented here as a source-language base for translation and verification.*
1 [Τιβέριος Ἰούλιος βασι]λεὺς Σαυρομ[άτης φιλόκαισαρ καὶ]
[φιλορώμαιος, εὐσεβής], ἀ̣ρχιερεὺς τῶν Σεβα̣σ̣[τῶν διὰ βίου]
[— — — — — — — — — τὰς] π̣εριναΐους στοὰ[ς τὰ]ς τ̣ῶν [— —]
[— — — — — — χρόνωι κα]θῃρημένας ἐκ θεμελίων διεγείρας
5 [— — — — — — — — Ἀφρο]δείτηι Ἀπατουριάδι καθειέρωσεν
[δι’ ἐπιμελείας — — — — — —] τοῦ ἐπὶ τῶν ἱερῶν ∙ ἐν τῶι ∙ βυ̣ʹ [ἔτει].
Source Colophon
The Greek source bodies were extracted from the local Tanais, Gorgippia, and Hermonassa source-text pages and copied for this translation pass at Tulku/Tools/scythian/sources/expansion_bench_2026-05-11/bosporan_sauromates_theos_aphrodite_greek_source_manual90.txt.
The local source pages identify the records as PHI Greek Inscriptions PH184019 / CIRB 1277, PH183861 / CIRB 1125, and PH183778 / CIRB 1045.
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