Manumission inscriptions at Delphi

The archaeological site of Delphi is an incredible source of information on Greek epigraphy. The most numerous single category of inscriptions are the manumission inscriptions, which reach roughly a number of 1300.

Manumission was called the action of liberation of a slave in antiquity. Slaves belonged to their masters until they served long enough or until they gathered the necessary sum of money for their liberation. When that moment came, the act of manumission had to be guaranteed by a god, most commonly Apollo. The slave was thus fictitiously sold to the deity, so that the sale action could never be violated. The act was recorded on inscriptions with a rather formulaic expression. The majority of the manumission inscriptions of Delphi are gathered in two main spots: on the supporting wall of the parodoi of the theatre and on the polygonal wall, particularly the part which served as back wall to the portico of the Athenians. Most of the inscriptions date between 200 B.C. and 100 A.D.

Despite their stylized expressions, these inscriptions offer an insights into Greek social and demographic history. Over 60% of the manumission inscriptions of Delphi concern female slaves. A comparison of prices proves that most female slaves were manumitted at a price roughly 20% lower than men. However, it seems that liberation in many cases was not complete: slaves are required under a paramone clause to stay with their ex masters for a specific period of time or until the latter passed away. One wonders what kind of freedom this was, but it seems that in some cases this was considered better than nothing, as the master did not have complete rights of life and death over them; furthermore, there were cases in which the slaves had become almost members of the family, so they did not want to be separated from their social environment, yet they would rather have the choice. The manumission acts were usually attended by witnesses, whose names are also mentioned on the inscription. The other people mentioned are the priests of the temple of Apollo and thus manumission inscriptions constitute an excellent source for tracing the succession lists of the priesthood of Delphi.

A typical manumission inscription is that of the female slave Meda: 1 ἄρχο[ντος Ἀμφι]στ[ράτου] μηνὸς [— — —] κου, ἐπὶ τοῖσ[δε ἀπέδ]ο[τ]ο Τι- μὼ Εὐδίκου, συνεπαινέοντος 5 τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτᾶς Λαδίκου, σῶμα γυ- ναικεῖον κοράσιον ἇι ὄνομα Μήδα, τιμᾶς ἀργυρίου δύο μνᾶν, καθὼς ἐπί- στευσε Μήδα τῶι θεῶι τὰν ὠνάν, ἐφ’ ὧι- τε ἐλευθέρα εἶμεν καὶ ἀνέφαπτος 10 ἀπὸ πάντων τὸμ πάντα χρόνον, ποιοῦ- σα ὅ κα θέληι. βεβαιωτὴρ κατὰ τοὺς

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