π(αρὰ) τῶν ἀπὸ κώμης Ἀφροδίτης Βίκτωρ διακόνῳ καὶ τοῖς θαυμασιωτάτοις ἡμετέροις διδάσκομεν τὴν εὐσεβεστάτην ἡμῶν δέσποιναν ὡς Ἰουλιανὸς ὁ λαμπρότατος βούλεται παρὰ τὸ ἔθνος ἡμᾶς ἑλκέσθαι εἰς παγαρχίαν τῆς Ἀνταιοπολιτῶν ἧς κεκράτηκεν ἀπὸ προ- οιμίων τῆς ἐπινεμήσεως, καίπερ ἀνθρώπους τυγχάνοντας τῆς τε δουκιανῆς ἐξουσίας καὶ τῶν δεσποινικῶν· καὶ προνοεῖν οὐκ’ οἴδαμεν πόθεν ἐπεξῆλθεν ἡμῖν ὁ τοιοῦτος, τῶν δημοσίων φόρων προφάσει· καὶ γὰρ ἐπίσταται ἡ ἐπιχώριος ἁρμόδια τάξις ὡς οὐδέποτε ἐν ὑστερησμῷ γεγόνμεν τῆς τούτων παροχῆς· οὗτος δὲ ἐπιδραμὼν τὰ ἡμέτερα κτήματα, οὐκ’ ὤκνησεν ἐκπορθῆσαι ταῦτα πλέον τῶν ὑπὸ βαρβάρων λελυμαινομένων τόπων ἐξ ἀφορμῆς τοῦ δημοσίου. καὶ οἱ αὐτῷ ἑπόμενοι πάντα τὰ πράγματα περὶ τὴν ἡμῶν κώμην ὡς εἴρηται ἐξεπόρθησαν κακῶς καὶ ἀνεκφράστως· ἔτι δὲ καὶ τὸν ταύτης ἀγρὸν ὥστε μὴ ἐξεῖναι ἡμῖν ἀποροῦσιν τὰς συνήθεις τε εἰσφέρειν τοῦ δημοσίου συντελείας καὶ ζῆν μετρίως μετὰ τῶν ζῴων καὶ ἐργαλείων καὶ χρηστηρίων πάντων, ἀλλʼ εἰς τὴν ἡμῶν ἀποτροφὴν οὐδὲν ἡμῖν ὑπέλειπαν ἐν ἀγρῷ καὶ ἐν τῇ κώμῃ οἱο(υ)δήποτε σκεύο(υ)ς τῆς εὐζωίας ἡμῶν. οἶδεν ὁ Θεὸς πάντα τὰ παρʼ αὐτῶν κατὰ τῶν νόμων πεπραγμένα, καὶ τὰς γεναμένας μιαιφονίας τοῦ συμβάντος τοιούτου λοιμοῦ καὶ ὀλόλυματα ἔχοντος, καὶ πάντα τὰ ἄφατα ζημιώματα τε καὶ ἀδικήματα τὰ περιελθόντα ἡμᾶς τοτε ἅτινα χάρτης οὐ δεδύνειται χωρεῖν εἰ μὴ ἀρρήκτῳ διηγεῖσθαι φωνῇ λαφυραγωγὸν δια ιστῶς. ὅθεν παρὰ τὸ ἀπορρεῖν ἡμᾶς πάντῃ πανταχόθεν περὶ τῆς σωτηρίας ἡμῶν, καὶ μία καὶ μονὴ ὑπολέλειπται ἐλπίς, σχόλην ἄγειν πρὸς τοῦτο τὸ περισπούδαστον ἡμῖν πρᾶγμα, προσιέναι τῇ εὐσεβ(εσ)τά(τῃ) ἡμῶν δεσποίνῃ ἐπισκόπου τῆς Ἀνταιπολιτῶν τοῦ θεοσεβ(οῦς), ὅπως ἐφορῶσηται τὴν ταπείνωσιν ἡμῶν καὶ ἀποτρέψῃ ἀφʼ ἡμῶν τῶν ταλαιπώρων τὸν εἰρημένον παγάρχην, καὶ ἡμεῖς εὕρωμεν εὐκόλως βιῶναὶ καὶ ἡσύχως ἐργάζεσθαι περὶ τὰ εὐσεβῆ τελέσματα καὶ τὴν ἐξαίσιον ἡμῶν ἐμβολὴν, ὥστε τούτου τυχόντας τοῦ εὐεργετήματος ἡμᾶς ποτε ὑγιουσθαι διὰ χειρὸς τῆς εὐσεβεστάτης ἡμῶν δέσποινης καὶ τῆς ὑμετέρας εὐκλείας, διʼ ἧς καὶ κολασθήσονται ἐκεῖνοι οἱ κακοῦργοι, οἱ οἰκήματα φανερὰ καὶ τὰ κτήματα(?) τῶν ὑμετέρων ὑπαρχόντων ἀνορυχάις καὶ ἀνασκαφαῖς ποιήσαντες ἄχρηστα.
(No Latin text was found in the document.)
From the community of Aphrodite, Victor the deacon and the most wonderful ones of our own, we teach the most pious of our mistresses as Julian the most illustrious wishes to draw us into the leadership of the Antiochians, which he has conquered from the beginnings of the distribution, although there are people encountering the ducal authority and the mistresses; and we do not know from where such a one has come forth to us, under the pretext of public taxes; for the local authority is aware of the appropriate order as we have never been in a state of distress regarding the provision of these things; this one, having rushed upon our possessions, did not hesitate to plunder these things more than those being ravaged by barbarians from the public's source. And those following him have plundered all matters concerning our community as has been stated, and they have been plundered badly and without restraint; moreover, the land of this place has become such that we cannot provide the usual contributions to the public and live moderately with the animals and all tools and instruments, but for our sustenance, nothing remains for us in the field and in the community, whatsoever preparations for our well-being. God knows all that has been done by them against the laws, and the calamities that have arisen from such a plague and the terrible things that have occurred to us, and all the unspeakable damages and injustices that have befallen us at that time, which a document could not bear to recount unless it were told in an unbroken voice. Hence, because of our distress from every side concerning our salvation, there remains one and only hope, to bring forth this most important matter to our most pious mistress, the bishop of the Antiochians, so that she may look upon our humiliation and turn away from us the aforementioned tyrant, and we may find it easy to live and work quietly concerning the pious results and our extraordinary contribution, so that those who happen to receive the benefit may be blessed by the hand of our most pious mistress and our own good fortune, through whom those wicked ones will be punished, those who have made their possessions and the possessions of your own visible and have made them useless through excavations and searches.