200 christina m. kreinecker
(II ce), where the recruit apion asks about the health of his siblings and
his father.
examples of people begging their relatives to take care of themselves or
others can be seen in the following. In his letter p.mich. VIII 491 (II ce),
apollinarios asks his mother to take care of herself and not to worry, tell-
ing her that he as a soldier has come to a “good” place, namely rome—
l. 9–10: ἐρωτῶ σε οὖν, μήτηρ, σεαυτῇ πρόσεχε, | μηδὲν δίσταζε περὶ ἐμοῦ· ἐγὼ
γὰρ εἰς καλὸν τό|πον ἦλθον. The care of his sisters, a certain child (pais?)
and its mother is the request of Julius germanus in his letter to his “sister”6
Tasucharion, p.mich. VIII 495.21–23 (II ce).
requests for the recipient to come are preserved in p.mich. VIII 474.5
(early II ce), o.florida 17.9–10 (mid to late II ce), p.mich. III 202.26–27
(may 5, 105 ce), in which Valeria and Thermuthas ask their sister to come
and take the position of a foster mother. an intensified request stands
in o.krok. I 98 (about early 109 ce), when dekinais asks the recipient
keikeisa, not only once, but twice, to come—ll. 3–5: ἐρωτῶ σε, Καικισα,
σκύλητει (l. σκύλητι) | πρὸς ἐμὲ ἐπὶ χρίαν (l. ἐπεὶ χρείαν) σου ἔχω· | ἐρωτῶ
σε, ἔρχου ὡς πρὸς ἐμέ (“I ask you, kaikeisa, proceed towards me for I have
need of you. I ask you, come particularly7 to me”).
In addition to these instances there are two more noteworthy exam-
ples of interpersonal requests. In p.sarap. 96.4–6 (90–133 ce) eutychides
asks his brother anubion not to forget him in his absence—ἐρωτῶ | σε μὴ
ἀμελεῖν μου ἐν ἀπου|σίᾳ τοιαύτῃ. conversely, the sender of psI VIII 943.11–12
(II ce?), a certain maximus, begs his brother korbolon not to be angry
with him—διὸ οὖν ἐρωτῶ σε, ἄδελ|φε, μή μοι ὀργισθῇς.
from an everyday sphere arise the following examples, which contain a
request for the transmission of different kinds of goods. among these are
three “artabae” of bread together with fishes in p.ryl. II 229.8–11 (february 20,
38 ce), remedies for feet in p.mert. I 12.17–20 (april 26, 59 ce), clothes in
p.Turner 18.10–12 (89–96 ce), sandals in p.mich. VIII 477.26–28 (early II ce):
καὶ | ἐρω[τ]ῶ σε ἂν δύνῃ [μοι ταχύτ]ε̣ρον πέμψαι ὑπόδημα | ἐπὶ (l. ἐπεὶ) πο[λλ]α�̣
ὀνε̣[ίναμαι] (l. ὀνίναμαι) [αὐτῶν] (“and I ask you, if it is possible, to send me
sandals fairly quickly, for I benefit much from them”), bread or flour in
sB XVIII 13337.2–3 (I–II ce), oil of roses in o.claud. I 171.3–5 (ca. 100–120 ce),
6 cf. eleanor dickey, “literal and extended use of kinship Terms in documentary
papyri,” Mnemosyne 57 (2004): 131–76, for kinship terms in documentary papyri.
7 for possible meanings of ὡς πρὸς ἐμέ cf. h. cuvigny in o.krok. I p. 167; according to
henry george liddell, robert scott, henry stuart Jones, and roderick mckenzie, A Greek-
English Lexicon (9th ed.; oxford: oxford university press, 1996), s.v. ὡς c.II.b, I understand
ὡς to emphasize the intention of the visit.