3The inscriptions presented here were found in different places in the Umm al-Jimāl area; they are all funerary. Nos. 1, 2, 4 and 6 are gravestones, while nos. 3 and 5 seems to be carved on the façade of a built tomb (see below). There are some difficulties in reading no. 4 due to the destruction of the upper part of the stone. Although we suggest an acceptable reading and analysis for this inscription, we hope that a new reading may be suggested by other scholars.

The inscriptions

Editorial conventions
{ } enclose letters and words of which the reading is doubtful
[ ] enclose letters or words which are restored

Stone no. 1 (fig. 1)

4This inscription was found lying among a pile of stones around an abandoned house in the new village of Umm al-Jimāl. The inscription is carefully engraved on a basalt stone well prepared for writing. It consists of two lines deeply incised on the upper part of the stone. The reading and translation are clear.

Transliteration

rṣwt br
mlkw

Translation

“Rṣwt son of Mlkw”

Stone no. 2 (fig. 2)

5This inscription was found in the same place as that of no. 1. It is composed of two lines deeply engraved on the upper part of a gravestone, allowing us to read it easily.

Transliteration

ʿqrb
br mʿn

Translation

“ʿqrb son of Mʿn”

Stone no. 3 (fig. 3)

6This funeral inscription was found in a pile of basalt stones within the courtyard of a house in the village of Umm al-Jimāl. It is carved on an elongated rectangular block, which may have been originally integrated within the masonry of a built tomb. The upper part of the stone is badly damaged, resulting in the loss of several letters of the first line. The second line is not without its problems either, as it was written quite roughly. Consequently, the reading is very uncertain.

Transliteration

[dnh q]brʾ [dy b]nh
ḥml br dmsyw

Translation

“[This is the t]omb [which was b]uilt by Ḥml son of Dmsyw” (?)

Stone no. 4 (fig. 4)

7Another gravestone consisting of three short lines.

Transliteration

ʿ{z}{z}{w}
brt
ḥnny

Translation

“ʿ{z}{z}{w} daughter of Ḥnny”

8The text is very short, containing only the name of the woman and her patronymic. The upper part of the stone is lightly damaged, making it difficult to read the woman’s name properly. From what one can distinguish of the lower parts of the last letters, we can suggest a reading of ʿ{z}{z}{w}.

Stone no. 5 (fig. 5)

9This short inscription is written in the middle of a rectangular basalt stone. It has a single line containing a name and patronymic.

Translation

ʿmw br rbyb[ʾl ]

Translation

“mw son of {Rbbʾl}”

Stone no. 6 (fig. 6)

10Another gravestone found among a pile of basalt stones in the courtyard of a house in the new village of Umm al-Jimāl. It contains a short inscription of two lines.

Transliteration

Rwfw
br nṭyw

Translation

“Rwfw son of Nṭyw”

Notes

11With the publication of this new collection of Nabataean inscriptions, approximately 68 Nabataean inscriptions are now available from the city of Umm al-Jimāl. In recent years, many inscriptions have been found during maintenance work that was carried out in the city. Furthermore, many locals have been revealing some of the stones with inscriptions that were used in building their houses in an earlier period during the construction of the modern village of Umm al-Jimāl. Since these inscriptions do not include a precise date, we can suggest approximate ones between the first and third centuries ce. This suggestion relies on the examination of the paleography of the texts, the content of the inscriptions and the other similar dated inscriptions from Umm al-Jimāl.