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Here we see line 7 as transcribed
by later editors of this papyrus. The reading of [c]heirographo
not only agrees with the ink on the page, it makes sense contextually,
and so it is a firmer reading of the text.
The word cheirographo is used here to identify this document
as a private agreement (rather than a public contract). Brucker
and Marichal note that this is a Greek form (in Latin this would
have been written cheirographum). This mistake suggests
that the scribe was bilingual in Greek and Latin, which is not surprising
given the prevalence of the Greek language in Roman Egypt. In fact,
it is likely that following this line the entire contract was recopied
in Greek; many examples of bilingual contracts survive from this
region.
Next:
Putting it All Together
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