REV. GEORGE MILLIGAN, ON THE GREER PAPYRI. G3 



•say directly, but it may be well to explain first what papyrus is, 

 and how it was prepared. It was the ordinary writing material, 

 the paper of the time, and was made from the papyrus plant 

 which then grew in great profusion in the Nile. The pith of 

 the stem was cut into long strips, and a number of these w^ere 

 laid down vertically to form an outer layer. Over this a second 

 layer was placed horizontally. And then the two layers were 

 hammered or pressed together to form a single sheet, which, 

 when it had been smoothed over with ivory or a shell, was ready 

 for use. If more space than a single sheet afibrded was required, 

 a roll, which might be of any length, was formed by fastening a 

 number of single sheets together. 



Of the papyri now available a considerable number contain 

 literary texts, both of works previously known, and of others, of 

 which hitherto we have possessed only the titles. Amongst 

 these new texts are fragments of Sappho and Pindar, the 

 Constitution of Athens hj Aristotle, the Mimes of Herodas, and 

 the Hypsipyle of Euripides. But the great bulk of the papyri 

 are non literary, and their contents are of the most miscellaneous 

 character, reports of legal proceedings, wills, contracts, accounts, 

 and so forth, and in addition a large number of private letters, 

 often of the most artless and self-revealing character. 



Let me give you an example, a letter* written in 1 B.C. by a 

 certain Hilarion to Alis, his sister, and also, probably, according 

 to the custom of the period, his wife. It runs as follows : — 



" Hilarion to Alis, his sister (wife), heartiest greetings, and to my 

 dear Berous (Qepovn rrj Kvpla ixov) and Apollonarion. Know that we 

 are still even now in Alexandria. Do not worry if, when all the 

 others return, I remain in Alexandria. I beg and beseech of you 

 (epcoTw (re kcu irocpaKaXo) ere) to take care of the little child, and as 

 soon as we receive wages {6il/a)VLov AaySoj/xev, cf. ii Cor. xi, 8) I will 

 send them to you. If — good luck to you ! — you bear oflfspring, if it 

 is a male, let it live ; if it is a female, expose it. You told 

 Aphrodisias, ' Do not forget me.' How can I forget you 1 I beg 

 you, therefore, not to worry. 



" The 29th year of Cajsar, Pauni 23." 



(Addressed) " Hilarion to Alis, deliver." 



Simple though this letter is, it is very significant. To the 

 pah\3ographer its value is undoubted, seeing that it is exactly 



* Full particulars regarding this, and most of the other documents 

 quoted in this lecture, will be found in the lecturer's Selections from the 

 Greek Papyri, published by the Cambridge University Press. 



