Chapter Epigraphic Habits and Writing Conventions in Late Antique Egypt

Abstract

Starting from the examination of one of the most recently discovered Greek inscriptions from the North Necropolis in Antinoupolis – found by the archaeological mission of the Istituto Papirologico “G. Vitelli” at El Sheikh ‘Abadah and here published for the first time – the chapter aims to reflect on the evolutions of epigraphic habits in late antique Egypt, focusing on the relationships between the texts on display and their physical features, especially the scripts employed and the layout. From this perspective, both “public” and “private” inscriptions are discussed, with an overview of some characteristic corpora, namely the texts from Philae and from the cemeteries of Terenouthis, Antinoupolis, and Latopolis.