# Pococke Kition inscriptions

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Phoenician and Semitic inscriptions

Pococke Kition inscriptions The inscriptions Writing Phoenician Discovered 1738 Cyprus Present location mostly destroyed

Part of a series on Canaanite and Aramaic inscriptions Corpora Scripturae Linguaeque Phoeniciae CIS (Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum) NE (Handbuch der Nordsemitischen Epigraphik) KAI (Kanaanäische und Aramäische Inschriften) TADAE (Textbook of Aramaic Documents from Ancient Egypt) CIIP (Corpus Inscriptionum Iudaeae/Palaestinae) Discoveries (17th & 18th c.) Palmyrene inscriptions Punic-Libyan bilinguals Cippi of Melqart Carpentras Stele Pococke Kition inscriptions Benhisa inscription Phoenician Harpocrates statues Nora Stone Athenian Greek-Phoenician inscriptions Seal inscriptions Discoveries (19th c.) Tripolitania Punic inscriptions Elephantine papyri and ostraca Mdina steles Carthaginian tombstones Humbert Carthage inscriptions Turin Aramaic Papyrus Blacas papyrus Falbe Punic inscriptions Reade Punic inscriptions Limyra bilingual Abu Simbel Phoenician graffiti Ain Nechma inscriptions Kellia inscription Marseille Tariff Nimrud ivory inscriptions Assyrian lion weights Phoenician metal bowls Anat Athena bilingual Puteoli Nabataean inscriptions Bourgade inscriptions Sarcophagus of Eshmunazar II Gozo stele Serapeum Offering Table Cirta steles Carthage Tariff Son of Baalshillek marble base Carthage tower model Bodashtart inscriptions Kition Resheph pillars Ankh-Hapy stele Pauli Gerrei trilingual inscription Baalshamin inscription Phoenician sun dial Umm al-Amad votive inscription Cesnola Phoenician inscriptions Khaznadar inscriptions Hadrumetum Punic inscriptions Mesha Stele Abydos graffiti Idalion bilingual Idalion Temple inscriptions Yehawmilk Stele Tharros Punic inscriptions Royal Steward inscription Carthaginian slaughterhouse inscription Carthaginian mother goddess inscription Carthage Festival Offering inscription Wilmanns Neopunic inscriptions Pricot de Sainte-Marie steles Cherchell Neopunic inscriptions Bashamem inscription Baal Lebanon inscription Saqqara Aramaic Stele Tayma stones Kition Tariffs Adadnadinakhe bricks Siloam inscription Sant'Antioco bilingual Palmyra Tariff Osorkon Bust Pierides Kition inscriptions Eshmun obelisk Persephone Punic stele Lilybaeum stele Henchir Guergour Neopunic inscriptions Guelaât Bou Sbaâ Neopunic inscriptions Tyre Cistern inscription Tamassos bilinguals Masub inscription Tabnit sarcophagus Panamuwa II inscription Madaba Nabataean Inscriptions Hadad Statue Abdmiskar cippus Maktar and Mididi inscriptions Bar-Rakib inscriptions Neirab steles Sarıaydın inscription Larnakas tis Lapithou pedestal inscription Kilamuwa Stela Hasanbeyli inscription Kition Necropolis Phoenician inscriptions Douïmès medallion El Amrouni mausoleum Abiba’l inscription Tortosa “bomos” inscription El-Osiris inscription Avignon Punic inscription Punic Tabella Defixionis Quintus Markius trilingual inscription Discoveries (20th c.) Farasa bilingual inscription Phoenician Adoration steles Banobal stele Eshmun inscription Sibbolet funeral inscription Stele of Zakkur Villaricos Phoenician stele Assur ostracon and tablets Throne of Astarte Gözne Boundary Stone Thinissut sanctuary inscription Gezer calendar Samaria Ostraca Olbia pedestal Giardino Birocchi inscription Sardis bilingual inscription Rhodes Phoenician-Greek bilingual inscriptions Kesecek Köyü inscription Aramaic Inscription of Taxila Arwad bilingual Mitsri genealogy inscription KNMY inscription Ahiram Sarcophagus Byblos Necropolis graffito Byblos altar inscription Ophel ostracon Phoenician arrowheads Ur Box inscription Byblos bronze spatulas Abda sherd Son of Safatba'al inscription Batnoam sarcophagus Yehimilk inscription Sefire steles Arslan Tash ivory inscription Hama graffiti Pul-i-Darunteh Aramaic inscription Arslan Tash amulets Tell Halaf inscription Agrigentum inscription Lachish letters Safatba'al inscription Hermopolis Aramaic papyri Phoenician papyrus letters Melqart stele Honeyman inscription Stele of Serapeitis Jebel Massoudj Neopunic inscription Adon Papyrus Kilamuwa scepter Tel Qasile ostraca Karatepe bilingual Tel el Maskhuta silver bowls Pumayyaton and Pnytarion's inscriptions Byblos clay cone inscriptions Carchemish Phoenician inscription Hatran inscriptions Djinet Neopunic inscriptions Wadi Murabba'at papyrus Hazor inscriptions Al Jib jar handles Byblos marble inscription Kubaba Aramaic inscription El-Kerak Inscription Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription Yavne-Yam ostracon Arad ostraca Nebi Yunis ostraca Tel Dan bowl Seville statue of Astarte Khirbet Beit Lei graffiti Amman Citadel Inscription Ein Gev jar Phoenician Sphinx inscription Baalshillem Temple Boy Abydos Aramaic papyrus Pyrgi Tablets Carthage Administration Inscription Daskyleion steles Mozia Punic inscriptions Deir Alla Inscription Grotta Regina Punic inscriptions Tekke Bowl Inscription (Knossos) Aramaic Sustenance tablet Aramaic inscription of Laghman Tel Siran inscription Letoon trilingual Aramaic inscription from al-Mal Hadad-yith'i bilingual inscription Ketef Hinnom scrolls Sarepta Tanit Inscription Çebel Ires Dağı inscription Monumental Hebrew inscription from Jerusalem Hazael horse frontlet Bukan inscription İvriz stele Bactria Aramaic documents Tel Dan Stele Ekron Royal Dedicatory Inscription Çineköy inscription Tablet De Geest Discoveries (21st c.) Zayit Stone Kuttamuwa stele Khirbet Qeiyafa ostracon Ataruz altar inscriptions Ishbaal Inscription v t e

The **Pococke Kition inscriptions** were a group of 31 Phoenician and 2 non-[Phoenician inscriptions](/source/Canaanite_and_Aramaic_inscriptions) found in [Cyprus](/source/Cyprus) and published by [Richard Pococke](/source/Richard_Pococke) in 1745. In describing [Kition](/source/Kition) (modern [Larnaca](/source/Larnaca)), Pococke wrote: "the walls seem to have been very strong, and in the foundations there have been found many stones, with inscriptions on them, in an unintelligible character, which I suppose, is the antient [*[sic](/source/Sic)*] Phoenician..."[1]

The Phoenician inscriptions are known as [KAI](/source/Kanaan%C3%A4ische_und_Aram%C3%A4ische_Inschriften) 33 ([CIS I](/source/Corpus_Inscriptionum_Semiticarum) 11), KAI 35 (CIS I 46) and CIS I 57-85. They represent some of the most important finds in Phoenician and Semitic language studies, as they were used by [Jean-Jacques Barthélemy](/source/Jean-Jacques_Barth%C3%A9lemy) in his decipherment of the Phoenician language.

Only one of the inscriptions still survives, in the [Ashmolean Museum](/source/Ashmolean_Museum) - all the rest were destroyed in construction work in 1749.[2][3]

## Surviving inscription – KAI 35

The surviving inscription on display at the [Ashmolean Museum](/source/Ashmolean_Museum), AN1974.325

The sole surviving inscription is a marble funeral stone, numbered "2" in Pococke's sketch, measuring 12 x 3 x 3 inches; the inscription is in memory of a deceased wife. The inscription was brought to England by a Dr. Porter of [Thaxted](/source/Thaxted), and presented to Oxford University by [Charles Gray MP](/source/Charles_Gray_(Colchester_MP)) in 1751.[4][5] It was published many times, first by Pococke, and then by John Swinton, [Richard Chandler](/source/Richard_Chandler_(antiquary)), [Jean-Jacques Barthélemy](/source/Jean-Jacques_Barth%C3%A9lemy), [Wilhelm Gesenius](/source/Wilhelm_Gesenius),[5] and [Johan David Åkerblad](/source/Johan_David_%C3%85kerblad).[2]

Today it resides at the [Ashmolean Museum](/source/Ashmolean_Museum), with accession number AN1974.325.[6]

## Concordance

Pococke 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 CIS 11 46 57 64 73 82 74 60 NP 81 79 68 80 78 67 76 70 66 NP 59 71 62 58 65 77 69 83 85 61 72 75 84 63 CIS 11 46 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 NP NP Pococke 1 2 3 23 20 8 29 22 33 4 24 18 15 12 26 17 21 30 5 7 31 16 25 14 11 13 10 6 27 32 28 9 19

## Gallery

		- A page from [Barthélemy](/source/Jean-Jacques_Barth%C3%A9lemy)'s publication of his decipherment of Phoenician: "Inscriptions Phéniciennes, trouvées en Chypre par M Richard Pococke". No. 1 is Pococke's No. 2 (KAI 35), and No. 3 is Pococke's No. 4. The other two are Hebrew transliterations of the same inscriptions.

		- [Concordance](/source/Concordance_(publishing)) with the [Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum](/source/Corpus_Inscriptionum_Semiticarum) (see table at bottom)

		- The only surviving inscription, today at the [Ashmolean Museum](/source/Ashmolean_Museum)

## Notes

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Pococke, v. II pg. 213

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Thomasson2013_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Thomasson2013_2-1) Fredrik Thomasson (11 January 2013). [*The Life of J. D. Åkerblad: Egyptian Decipherment and Orientalism in Revolutionary Times*](https://books.google.com/books?id=NS8yAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA93). BRILL. pp. 93–. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-90-04-23635-6](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-90-04-23635-6).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** [CIS I](https://archive.org/details/CorpusInscriptionumSemiticarumI1/page/n58/mode/1up), p.39, "Lapides interea ad aquaeductus molem struendam adhibuit vir turca insulae Cypro praefectus Beschir, circa annum 1749; ut monumenta ipsa reperiendi spes omnis linquenda sit, nisi aquaeductus ipse destruatur."

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Ashmolean"](https://collections.ashmolean.org/collection/browse-9148/per_page/25/offset/39025/sort_by/size/object/70553).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Macray1868_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Macray1868_5-1) Macray, William Dunn (1868). [*Annals of the Bodleian Library, Oxford, A. D. 1598-A. D. 1867: With a Preliminary Notice of the Earlier Library Founded in the Fourteenth Century*](https://books.google.com/books?id=ic9IAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA162). Rivingtons. p. 162. Charles Gray, M.P. for Colchester, presented… an inscription, in the Phoenician language, upon a white marble stone, which was brought, with many others, from Citium, in the island of Cyprus, by Dr. Porter, a physician of Thaxted in Essex. The stone measures twelve inches in length, by three in breadth, and three in depth. It has been frequently engraved: first by Pocock (Travels in the East, vol. ii. pl.xxxiii. 2); next by Swinton (Inscriptiones Citieae, 1750, and Philos. Trans. 1764); afterwards by Chandler, Barthélemy, &c; and, lastly, by Gesenius (for whom former copies were collated with the original, and corrected, by Mr. Reay) in his Scripturae Linguæque Phaenicia, Monumenta, published in 1837, where the inscription is described at pp. 126-133, part i., and engraved at pl. xi. part iii. It appears to be an epitaph by a husband in memory of his wife.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** [Marble block with Phoenician funerary inscription](https://collections.ashmolean.org/object/308786)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Pococke Kition inscriptions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pococke_Kition_inscriptions) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pococke_Kition_inscriptions?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.