[ 722 ] 
Hence it appears, that the antient Palmyrenes, in 
this part of their notation, ufed only four numeral 
characters; two of which were letters of their al- 
phabet, or at lead a fort of marks endued with fimi- 
lar forms. So that this kind of notation might have 
prevailed amongft them feveral centuries before the 
commencement of the Chriftian sera. For we 
learn from ( a ) Diodorus Siculus, that the Arabs of 
Petra, or A 1 Hejr, on the confines of the defarts of 
Syria, and at no very great diftance from the borders 
of Irak, ufed the very fame letters with thofe of 
the neighbouring Syrians, and therefore probably of 
the people of Tadmor, 3 1 1 years before the birth of 
Christ. This gives us fome reafon to believe, 
confidering the fituation of the aforefaid Arabs, that 
thefe letters could not have been very different from 
thofe, which three or four centuries afterwards form- 
ed the alphabet of the Palmyrenes. 
7. It ought to be obferved, that the fourth infcrip- 
tion is dated in the year of Seleucus 5^4, nearly coinci- 
dent with the year of Christ 243, towards the clofe 
of Gordian’s reign ; and confequently before Philip’s 
elevation to the imperial throne. This may be fairly 
collected from the ninth of Mr. Dawkins’s Greek 
inferiptions, as well as from that drawn in the lan- 
guage of the Palmyrenes, which I have here been 
endeavouring to explain. From hence likewife it 
feems plainly enough to appear, that the emperor 
Alexander Severus himfelf was at Tadmor in the 
(a) Diod. Sic. Bibliothec. Hifloric. Lib. xix. p, 723. Edit. Rho- 
doman. Hanoviie, 1604. 
year 
