The mother of Ptolemaios
mother · Oxyrhynchus, Roman Egypt · 2nd–3rd century
A mother who wrote to her son Ptolemaios, away at his studies. The top of the letter is lost, and her name with it.
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2nd–3rd century · A mother's letter, written on hearing that her son's teacher had left. The sixth book is taken to be Book 6 of the Iliad. The attendant is the paidagogos, the servant who looked after a boy and took him to his lessons.
I took care to send and ask after your health and to learn what you are reading. He said it was the sixth book, and he had a great deal to say about your attendant.
ἐμέλησε δέ μοι πέμψαι καὶ πυθέσθαι περὶ τῆς ὑγίας σου καὶ ἐπιγνώναι τί ἀναγεινωσκεις. καὶ ἔλεγεν τὸ ζῆτα, ἐμαρτύρει δὲ πολλὰ περὶ τοῦ παιδαγωγοῦ σου.
Oxyrhynchus Papyri VI 930 (P.Oxy. VI 930)
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