View source for Duenos inscription

{{Short description|Old Latin text}}
{{Infobox artefact
|image=Hermes 16 illustration1.png
|created={{circa}} 550 BC
|material=[[Clay]]
|discovered_date=1880
|discovered_by=[[Heinrich Dressel]]
|discovered_place=[[Rome]], [[Lazio]], [[Italy]]
|location=[[Berlin]], [[Germany]]
|caption=The Duenos inscription, as recorded by [[Heinrich Dressel]]|language=[[Old Latin]]}}
[[File:Duenos.jpg|thumb|The Duenos Inscription on its ''[[kernos]]'' vase]]
The '''Duenos inscription''' is one of the earliest known [[Old Latin]] texts, variously dated from the 7th to the 5th century BC.<ref>Osvaldo Sacchi, "Il trivaso del Quirinale", in ''Revue Interantionale de Droit de l'Antiquité'', 2001, p. 277; citing: Attilio Degrassi, ''[[Inscriptiones Latinae Liberae Rei Publicae]]'', 1, 1957; Arthur Gordon, "Notes on the Duenos-Vase Inscription in Berlin", ''California Studies in Classical Antiquity'', Vol. 8, 1975, pp.&nbsp;53–72; Giovanni Colonna, "Duenos", in ''Studi Etruschi'', '''47''', 1979, pp. 163–172; Brent Vine, [http://www.pies.ucla.edu/IESV/1/BV_Duenos.pdf "A Note on the Duenos Inscription"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304102829/http://www.pies.ucla.edu/IESV/1/BV_Duenos.pdf |date=2016-03-04 }}, [[University of California at Los Angeles]].</ref> It is inscribed on the sides of a ''[[kernos]]'', in this case a trio of small globular vases adjoined by three clay struts. It was found by [[Heinrich Dressel]] in 1880 in the valley between Quirinale and Viminale (today [[Via Nazionale (Rome)|Via Nazionale]])
in [[Rome]]. The ''kernos'' is part of the collection of the [[Staatliche Museen]] in [[Berlin]] (inventory no. 30894,3).

The inscription is written [[Right-to-left script|right to left]] in three units, without spaces to separate words. It is difficult to translate, as some letters are hard to distinguish, particularly since they cannot always be deduced by context. The absence of spaces causes additional difficulty in assigning the letters to the respective words.

==Text and translations==

There have been many proposed translations advanced by scholars since the discovery of the ''kernos''; by 1983, more than 50 different explanations of the meaning had been put forward.<ref>Arthur E. Gordon, ''Illustrated Introduction to Latin Epigraphy'', 1983, p. 77.</ref> Due to the lack of a large body of archaic Latin, and the method by which [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] abbreviated their inscriptions, scholars have not been able to produce a single translation that has been accepted by historians as accurate.

Below is the transcription and one of many possible interpretations:<ref>S. Warmington, 54 ff.; and H. Eichner, in: ''Die Sprache'', 34, 1988-1990, 207 ff.</ref>
:a. The direct [[unicase]] transcription
:b. Direct transcription, in lowercase, with possible [[Macron (diacritic)|macron]]s and word breaks
:c. A speculative interpretation and translation into [[Classical Latin]]
:d. An English gloss (approximate translation/interpretation) of the Classical Latin rendering

'''Line 1:'''
:a. {{sc2|IOVESATDEIVOSQOIMEDMITATNEITEDENDOCOSMISVIRCOSIED}}
:b. ''iouesāt deivos qoi mēd mitāt, nei tēd endō cosmis vircō siēd''
:c. ''Jūrat deōs quī mē mittit, nī [ergā tē] comis virgō sit''
:d. 'The person who sends me prays to the gods, lest the girl be not kind towards thee'

'''Line 2:'''
:a. {{sc2|ASTEDNOISIOPETOITESIAIPAKARIVOIS}}
:b. ''as(t) tēd noisi o(p)petoit esiāi pākā riuois''
:c. ''at tē'' [... uncertain ...] ''pācā rīvīs''
:d. 'without thee [...] calm with [these] rivers'

'''Line 3:'''
:a. {{sc2|DVENOSMEDFECEDENMANOMEINOMDVENOINEMEDMALOSTATOD}}
:b. ''duenos mēd fēced en mānōm (m)einom duenōi nē mēd malo(s) statōd''
:c. ''Bonus mē fēcit in manum [...] bonō, nē mē malus [clepitō]''
:d. 'A good man made me (in good intention?) for a good man; may I not be stolen by an evil man.'

An interpretation set out by Warmington and Eichner, renders the complete translation as follows, though not with certainty:
#It is sworn with the gods, whence I'm issued:<br />If a maiden does not smile at you,
#nor is strongly attracted to you,<br />then soothe her with this fragrance!
#Someone good has filled me for someone good and well-mannered,<br />and not shall I be obtained by someone bad.

===Notes===
''Duenos'' is an older form of Classical Latin {{Lang|la|bonus}} ('good'), just as Classical {{Lang|la|[[Polemos|bellum]]}} ('war') is from Old Latin ''duellum''. Some scholars{{who|date=April 2018}} posit Duenos as a proper name, instead of merely an adjective.

==Epigraphic note==
The inscription (CIL I 2nd  2, 4) is scratched along the side of the body of three vases made of dark brown ''[[bucchero]]'', connected with each other by short cylindric arms. It is written from right to left spiralling downwards about {{frac|1|1|2}} times. The letters are written upside-down for a reader who looks at the inscription from a level position; this has been explained by Aldo Luigi Prosdocimi<ref>{{cite journal |first=Aldo Luigi |last=Prosdocimi |title=Studi sul latino arcaico |language=it |journal=Studi Etruschi |volume=47 |date=1979 |pages=173–221}}</ref> as due to the fact that the inscription was meant to be read from above, not from a sideways position. Some letters are written in an archaic fashion that appears influenced by the [[Greek alphabet]].<ref>J. E. Sandys, S. G. Campbell, ''Latin Epigraphy: an Introduction to the study of Latin Inscriptions'' 1974, p. 40–41.</ref> There are signs of corrections in the two {{sc2|C}} or {{sc2|K}} of {{sc2|PAKARI}} and {{sc2|FECED}} and in the {{sc2|L}} of {{sc2|MALOS}}. Three distinct sections are individuated by spaces after {{sc2|SIED}} and {{sc2|VOIS}}. There are neither spaces delimiting words nor signs of interpunction. The earliest interpunction to appear was syllabic. As it  appeared only in the 7th century BC, the inscription should be more ancient.<ref>[[Giuliano Bonfante]] and [[Larissa Bonfante]], ''Lingua e cultura degli Etruschi'' Torino, 1985, p. 63.</ref>

The inscription is made up by two distinct parts or sections, the second one beginning with the word {{sc2|DVENOS}}.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Enrico [Heinrich] |last=Dressel |author-link=Heinrich Dressel |title=Di una antichissima iscrizione latina graffita sopra un vaso votivo rinvenuta a Roma |language=it |journal=Annali dell' Istituto di Corrispondenza Archeologica |volume=52 |date=1880 |page=180}}</ref>  It was found in a ''[[favissa]]'' (votive deposit). It belongs to the kind known as "speaking inscriptions", widely in use in the [[Classical antiquity#Archaic period .28c.8th to c.6th centuries BC.29|Archaic period]]. Some scholars consider the object to be of good quality and reflecting the high social status of the owner. Others consider it common.

==Site of the find==
{{hatnote|The following sections are mainly based on Osvaldo Sacchi's 2001 article "Il trivaso del Quirinale".<ref>Osvaldo Sacchi, "Il trivaso del Quirinale", in ''Revue Interantionale de Droit de l'Antiquité'', 2001, pp. 277–344.</ref>}}

The vase was bought from an [[antiquarian]] by [[Heinrich Dressel]] shortly after its find. It was discovered in 1880 by workers who were digging to lay the foundation of a building near the newly opened [[Via Nazionale (Rome)|Via Nazionale]], in the valley between the [[Quirinal Hill]] and the [[Viminal Hill]]. More precisely it was found on the south slope of the Quirinal, near the church of [[San Vitale, Rome]]. Dressel was told the place was supposed to have been a burial site.<ref>Bréal; Gordon.</ref>

Archaeologist [[Filippo Coarelli]] has advanced the hypothesis that the object might have been placed in the votive deposit of one of the temples of goddess [[Fortuna]] dedicated by king  [[Servius Tullius]], perhaps the one known as ''Fortuna Publica'' or '' Citerior'', i.e. located on the side of the Quirinal near to Rome. Her festival recurred on the ''nonae'' of April (April 5).<ref>Filippo Coarelli ''Il Foro Boario'' p. 289 ff.; Plutarch ''Quaest. Romanae'' 74 and ''De Fortuna Romana'' 10</ref> However, June 11, the festival day of the [[Matralia]], which was originally devoted to ''Mater Matuta'', was also the day of the ''Fortuna Virgo'', ritually associated with the passage of girls from adolescence into adulthood and married life.<ref>Arnobius ''Adversus Nationes'' II 67; Aurelius Augustinus ''De Civitate Dei'' IV 11; Ovid ''Fasti'' VI 221; [[Mario Torelli]] ''Lavinio e Roma. Riti iniziatici tra archeologia e storia'' 1984, p. 53 ff. and 117 ff.; [[Giovanni Colonna (archaeologist)|Giovanni Colonna]] "Duenos" in ''Studi Etruschi'' '''47''' (1979) p. 168; [[Robert E. A. Palmer]] "Roman shrines of female chastity from the struggle of chastity to the papacy of Innocent I" in ''Rivista Storica dell'Antichità'' '''4'''  (1974) p. 129 ff. (also available as a monograph from the publisher Pàtron) who thinks the sanctuary of the votive deposit should be that of a Fortuna [[Bona Dea]] much more ancient than the Εύελπις and of purely Roman tradition. [[Kurt Latte]] ''Römische Religionsgeschichte'' Munich, 1960, p. 228 ff. excludes the name of Bona Dea as a translation of a Greek theonym.</ref>

For another scholar, the site of the find was in Trastevere but near the valley between the Viminale and Quirinale.<ref>Giovanni Colonna, "Duenos", in ''Studi Etruschi'', '''47''', 1979, pp. 163–172.</ref>

==Overview of the linguistic research==
The antiquity of the document is generally acknowledged. The language shows archaic characters in morphology, phonetics and syntax. The absence of ''u'' after ''q'' would testify to its  greater antiquity comparatively to the inscription of the ''cippus'' of the [[Roman Forum|Forum]], also known as [[Lapis Niger]] (CIL I 1).<ref>G. Pennisi "Il tri-vaso di Duenos" in  ''Studi Latini e Italiani'' 1992 p. 14.</ref>

===First section===
For the sake of convenience of interpretation, the text is usually divided into two sections, the first one containing  the first two units and ending with {{sc2|PAKARIVOIS}}. The two sections show a relative syntactic and semantic independence.

Many attempts have been made at deciphering the text.

In the 1950s the inscription had been interpreted mainly on the basis of (and in relation to) the supposed function of the vases, considered either as containers for a love philter or of beauty products: the text would then mockingly threaten the owner about his behaviour towards the vase itself or try to attract a potential buyer.<ref>Emilio Peruzzi "L'iscrizione di Duenos " in ''La Parola del Passato'' '''13''' (1958) p. 328 ff.: the author supposes the object is a love toy and the inscription would be a playful warning to the owner not turn down the object itself, i.e. "he who turns me upside down  (''mitat'') prays the gods that the girl should not give you her favours lest you want to be satisfied through the  workings of ''Tuteria''": Tuteria would then be a proper name  and the object the work of an enchantress that exercised her magic art to get the lost lover back for a female customer of hers; E. Gjerstad "The Duenos vase" in ''Kung. Vitt. och Antikvitets Akademiens Handlingen'' (1959)  pp. 133–143 supposed the object were a container for beauty products and interpreted the text as: "''Iurat deos qui me mittit: 'Ne in te comis virgo sit asted, nisi ope utens ei pacari vis'. Bonus me fecit in bonum atque bono, ne me malus dato!''" , i.e. " 'Thy girl shall not be amiable to thee, unless thou befriend her by using (my) assistance' Good man has made me for a good purpose and for the benefit of a good man; may not a bad man present me!"</ref> This is the so-called erotic line of interpretation which found supporters until the 1980s.<ref>Filippo Coarelli, ''Il Foro Boario'', 1988, p. 289 ff. Tuteria = Tutela would be a theonym, i.e. one of the many personifications of Fortuna, perhaps the Τύχη Εύελπις of the ''vicus Longus'': the meaning of the text would be that of a girl forced to be complacent for the effect of the moderating intervention of a deity in whose sanctuary the vase was dedicated. T. Bolelli. "De antiquissima inscriptione quae Dueni nuncupatur annotationes", in Cipriano, Di Giovine, and Mancini (eds.) ''Miscellanea di studi linguistici in onore di W. Belardi''. '''1''' (1984) pp. 207–214: "Swears for the gods he who sells me that, if the girl is not nice towards you, at least she shall remain with you (i.e. you shall not lose her) lest you want make peace (with her) through the workings of Tuteria (an enchantress)."</ref>

During the 1960s [[Georges Dumézil]] proposed a new line of thought in the interpreting of the text. He remarked the inconsistency of the previous interpretations both with the solemnity of the opening  formula ("''Iovesat deivos qoi med mitat''": 'He swears for the gods who sends /delivers me') and with the site of the find. Dumézil's interpretation was: "If it happens that the girl is not nice to you/ has no easy relationship with you ("''nei ted endo cosmis virco sied''" = "''ne in te (=erga te) comis virgo sit''"), we shall have the obligation of bringing  her and you into good harmony, accord, agreement ("''asted noisi ... pakari vois''"="''at sit nobis ... pacari vobis''"). The transmission of the object would be expressed by the words ''qoi med mitat''. The story mirrored in the text would thus depict a custom deeply rooted in Roman society that is described by [[Plautus]] in the scene of the [[Menaechmi]] in which the ''tutor'' of the ''virgo'' or his representatives formally give a suretyship about her attitude towards a man.<ref>[[Georges Dumézil]], "La deuxième ligne de l' "inscription de Duenos" in ''Latomus'' '''102''' 1969, pp. 244-255; id. ''Idées romaines'', Paris, 1969, pp. 12–28; It. tr. p. 25.</ref><ref>In fact this line of interpretation, based on the reading of ''toiteisai'' as related to ''tutela'' (ward, guardianship) either as a noun (''ope  tutelae'') or an adjective ''tuteria'' (''ope tuteria = ope tutoria''), had already been proposed in 1934 by philologist and literary critic Antonino Pagliaro, who interpreted the segment {{sc2|ASTEDNOISI...PAKARIVOIS}} as meaning: 'unless [''noisi'' = ''nisi''] you will [''vois'' from ''volo'' 'I want'] consider yourself satisfied by the exercise of the marital ''potestas''<nowiki />'. He understood ''ope tuteria'' as referring  to the ''potestas'' exercised by the husband through the ''manus maritalis'', which would be equated to a sort of ward, ''tutela''. Cf. "La cosiddetta iscrizione di Dueno" in ''Atene e Roma'' '''3''':2, 1934, pp. 162–175.</ref>

Dumézil's interpretation though was fraught with linguistic problems. Apart from the value of the {{sc2|I}} before {{sc2|OPE}}, which he considered meaningless or an error of the incisor, the only possible meaning of ''ope'' in Latin is 'by the power or force of', and it governs a word in the genitive case. Thence the only governing word could be the group {{sc2|TOITESIAI}}: this would then be an exception to the rule of the genitive of the themes in ''-a'', which does not end in ''-as'' as expected, an archaism perhaps in Dumézil's view. {{sc2|TOITEISIAI}} would then denote the means by which the ''nois(i)'', 'we', would have the authority of establishing peace between the 'vois' 'you' (the couple) of the main relationship justifying the delivery of the vase.<ref>Cf. Georges Dumézil, ''Idées romaines'' p. 15.</ref> Dumézil thinks of the involvement of more than one ''tutor'' for each party in order to explain the two plurals ''nois(i)'' and ''vois''. Lastly the ending {{sc|ESIAI}} presents difficulties. It might derive from an archaic ''-e-s-la'' as proposed by H. Osthoff in the formation of Latin abstract names<ref>H. Osthoff, "Die Suffixform ''-sla-'' vornehmlich im Germanischen", in ''Paul und Braunes Beitrage'' '''3''', (1876) pp. 335–347, partic. p. 336.</ref> with an assimilation of the liquid into an ''i''. Another possibility would be to interpret the suffix ''-ela'' as ''-e-la'', i.e. as a female derivation of an ancient neuter ''-el'' attested in Hittite.<ref>Cf. [[Émile Benveniste]], ''Origine de la formation de noms en indoeuropéen'', Paris, 1962–1966, p. 325.</ref> This would entail admitting the incisor made two errors.

Antonino Pagliaro understood the word {{sc2|TOITESIAI}} as an adjective from noun ''tutela'', ''ope tuteria'', i.e. ''ope tutoria'' in classical Latin: the word would thence be an attribute in the ablative.<ref>Antonino Pagliaro, above, pp. 162 ff.; cf. above note.</ref>

Dumézil's contribution and the location of the find gave researchers grounds to pursue their work of interpretation in the  same direction, i.e. of its significance as a token of legal obligation. The efforts have centred on deciphering of the last segment of the first section, {{sc2|ASTED...PAKARIVOIS}}.

As already mentioned above, the cult of ''Fortuna Virgo'', celebrated on the day of the [[Matralia]], was related to the role of girls who became married women. The passage saw girls as completely passive subjects both during the archaic period and great part of the republican: the matrimonial exchange was conducted, as far as legally relevant profiles were concerned, by the subjects who had ''potestas'' on the woman and by the future husband (or he/those who had ''potestas'' over him). This is testified by the fact the ''virgo'' had no right of pronouncing  the ''nupta verba''.<ref>Festus s.v. ''Nupta verba'', p. 174 L; Paulus exc. Festi s.v. ''Nupta verba'', p. 175 L.</ref><ref>G. Colonna, ''Duenos'', in SE 1979, p. 168; R. E. A. Palmer, 1974, p. 129 ff.; K. Latte, p. 228 ff.</ref>

The passage which presents the greatest difficulties is the central group of letters {{sc2|IOPETOITESIAI}} in the string {{sc2|ASTED...VOIS}}. Proposed interpretations include: ''iubet'' orders for {{sc2|IOPET}}; ''futuitioni'' sexual intercourse for {{sc2|IOPETOI}},<ref>Vittore Pisani ''Manuale storico della lingua latina'' Torino, 1948-1950, p. 9: the tutors would guarantee the sexual disponibility/acquiescence of the girl.</ref> the cut {{sc2|TOI}}/{{sc2|TESIAI}} or {{sc2|OITES}}/{{sc2|IAI}} so that {{sc2|OPE}} would be the only recognisable Latin word.

Dumézil attributes a peculiar semantic value to the syllabic group {{sc2|TOITESIAI}}: a moral instrument that is nothing else than a form of the power the males of a family group (father, tutors) exercised on a girl, i.e. a variant or alteration of the word ''tutelae'', similar to ''tu(i)tela''. Since this interpretation has been proposed no critic has been able to disprove it. Authoritative scholars on the grounds of the lexeme ''toitesiai'' have proposed a theonym (Coarelli), a feminine proper name Tuteria (Peruzzi, Bolelli), or even a ''gentilicium'', the gens Titur(n)ia (Simon and Elboj) mentioned by Cicero.<ref>Cicero ''Ad Famil.'' XIII 39.</ref>

In the 1990s, two further contributions have discussed once again the interpretation of the second part of the first grapheme, particularly morpheme ''toitesiai''. Even though doubts have been cast over its correspondence with the technical Roman legal word ''tutela'', Dumézil's intuition of recognising in the destination of the vase a juridical function, namely a matrimonial ''sponsio'', was accepted and taken on.

G. Pennisi <ref>G. Pennisi, "Il tri-vaso di Duenos", in ''Studi Latini e Italiani'', 1992, p. 7–44.</ref> reconstructs the text as follows: "''Iovesat deivos qoi med mitat: nei ted cosmis virgo sied ast ednoisi opetoi pakari vois. Duenos med feced en manom einom duenoi ne med malos tatod''". Segment {{sc2|EDNOISI}} is deciphered recurring to Homeric έεδνα in the meaning of nuptial gifts and the speaking token would be a marriage compact or promise by a young man in love to a girl to whom the vase is presented as a gift. The inscription would thence exhibit an oath structure consisting in an archaic form of ''[[coemptio]]'': "Swears for the gods he who buys me": ''mitat = *emitat'' (the future bridegroom would be speaking in the third person). Then passing to the second person the compact would be set out in the second line by the offering of the nuptial gifts as a guarantee. The third line would complete the legal formula of the compact (''Duenos / ne med malos tatod'').
Leo Peppe<ref>Leo Peppe, "Storie di parole, storie di istituti sul diritto matrimoniale arcaico", in  ''Studia et Documenta Historiae et Iuris'' 1997, pp. 123 ff.</ref> has proposed to interpret the inscription as a primitive form of matrimonial ''coemptio'' different from that presented in [[Gaius]], consisting in a cumulative acceptance that included both the legal aspects concerning  the transmission of the dotal assets and the religious ones inherent in the matrimonial cults and rites.

F. Marco Simon and G. Fontana Elboj (autopsy) confirmed the interpretation of the previous proposals that see in the vase the symbol of a marriage compact. The authors ground their  interpretation on the segment {{sc2|OITESIAI}} instead of {{sc2|TOITESIAI}}. They therefore identified a root ''*o-it'' (composed by prefix ''*o'' and [[lexeme]] ''*i-'', cf. Latin  ''eo'') related to classic Latin ''utor'', and suffix ''-esios/a'' (cf. ''Valesios'' of the [[Lapis Satricanus]] and ''Leucesie'' of the [[carmen Saliare]]). The substantive ''oitesiai'' would be thus related to the semantic field of ''utor'' i.e. the concept of ''utilitas''. Therefore, the text should be divided as: ''asted noisi; opet otesiai pakari vois''. ''Opet'' would be an articulatory fusion  between the dative ''opi'' and conjunction ''et''. The whole text should thus be understood as: ''Ni erga te virgo comis sit, asted nobis; (iurat) opi et utilitati pangi vois'', 'if the girl is not to your taste/agreeable to you, let her go back to us; (he swears) to give you guarantee about your disturb and your interest'. The segment ''oitesiai'' could be also understood as ''utensilium'' referred to the vase itself as a token of suretyship or ''[[usus]]'' in the technical legal sense of Roman marriage as a way of providing a guarantee. The last two hypotheses are, however, considered unacceptable by the authors on the grounds that no genitive marker is to be found in the segment ''oitesiai''.<ref>F. Marco Simon and G. Fontana Elboj, "Sponsio matrimonial en la Roma arcaica", in ''Revue International de Droit de l'Antiquité'' '''43''', 1996, pp. 232–234.</ref>
The proposed interpretation would find support in its strict analogy with a passage of [[Terentius]]'s [[Hecyra]] (vv. 136–151), in which a story similar to that supposedly recorded on  the vase is described. The text would thus be the undertaking of an obligation concerning the eventuality that the girl go back to her family of origin, should she be not liked by the bridegroom (''asted endo cosmis virco sied, asted noisi'').

Even after the last two contributions related above, Sacchi acknowledges that all attempts at interpreting the segment {{sc2|AST...VOIS}} remain conjectural.

Dumézil's hypothesis of a protoform of ''tutela'', though attractive and plausible, remains unconfirmed.

===Juridical note on the matrimonial ''sponsio''===
Although there are still obscure points in the interpretation of line two, it is generally accepted that the text contains the formula of an oath. On the archaic oath and its juridical value there is large agreement among scholars. It looks also probable that the object should have a religious implication: an instrument permeated by religious ritualism, as the oath could well be employed in legal practice at the time of the object, as seems supported by linguistic analysis.<ref>Emil Benveniste, ''Le vocabulaire des institutions indoeuropeennes'', Italian translation, 1976, vol. II, pp. 367–375; Giacomo Devoto, "Parole giuridiche", in ''Scritti minori'' I, 1958, p. 100; Osvaldo Sacchi, "Il trivaso del Quirinale", in ''Revue Interantionale de Droit de l'Antiquité'', 2001, p. 301</ref> The usage of the oath in archaic times as an instrument of private civil law could have been widespread, even though the issue has not yet been thoroughly analysed.<ref>O. Sacchi, above, p. 302-303; Salvatore Tondo "La semantica di sacramentum nella sfera giudiziale" in ''Studia et Documenta Historiae et iuris'' '''35''', 1969 p. 305 and  337; Francesco Sini ''Documenti sacerdotali di Roma antica'' I. ''Libri e commentari'' Sassari, 1983, p.164; Antonello Calore, ''Per Iovem lapidem'', 2000, p.146; Filippo Cancelli, ''La giuriprudenza unica dei pontefici'', Milano, 1996, p. 36.</ref> Even though in the inscription there is no segment directly reminiscent of the dialogic formula of the ''sponsio'', i.e. "''spondes tu ...?''", "''spondeo!''", internal and external evidence allow the assumption of the enactment of a matrimonial ''sponsio''.<ref>''Res sacrae'' were the straight ''tunica'' and the yellow network worn by the bride. Festus s. v. ''spondere'', p. 440 L, derives ''sponsio'' from Greek σπονδάς, i.e. the sacred libation the bride and bridegroom dedicated to the gods.</ref> Such a usage of oaths is attested in later literary sources.<ref>Pliny, ''Naturalis Historia'', XXVIII 27; Servius, ''Ad Georgicas'', I 21; Plautus, ''Cistellaria'' 98; Ovid, ''Epodes'', XXI 133-144; O. Sacchi, above, p. 304.</ref>

Besides the trace of a ''sponsio'' as the legal function of the object, Dumézil would also see that of providing a piece evidence, i.e. a probatory attitude. [[Maurus Servius Honoratus|Servius]] in his commentary to the ''Aeneid'' writes that, before the introduction of the matrimonial tablets, in Latium the parties used to exchange tokens of pledge (''symbola'') on which they stated as a promise that they agreed to the marriage and nominated guarantors (''sponsores''). To the same time of the regal period is ascribed the introduction of the Greek use of double scriptures, ''tesserae''.<ref>Servius, ''Aeneis'', X 79: ''Legere furari ... Gremiis abducere pactas id est sponsas: nam ante usum tabularum matrimonii cautiones sibi invicem emittebant, et fideiussores dabant: unde admissum est ut sponsum dicamus virum a spondendo, et sponsam promissam. Ceterum proprie sponderi puallae est: ergo sponsus non quia promittitur, sed quia spondet et sponsores dat. Sane exaggeratio est nimia in quod ait 'gremiis abducere', tamquam iam uxores.'': the allusion to the simulated abduction of the girl reflects a practice attested in rural Latium til the time of the [[Social War (91–88 BC)|social war]] according to Gellius: cf. Paulus ex Festus s.v. ''rapi'', p. 365 L; Simon and  Elboj, above, p. 267; Georges Dumézil, ''Idées romaines'', p. 23; G. Colonna, above, p. 168, n. 4; O. Sacchi, above, p. 325.</ref>

The sponsio is one of the most ancient forms of verbal undertaking of obligation and its religious nature is acknowledged, as well as its connection with betrothal.<ref>Arangio-Ruiz, ''Instituciones'', p. 446; W. H. Buckler, ''Obligation in Roman Law'', New York, 1893.</ref> The ancient sources are in agreement that the archaic ''sponsalia'' had a religious nature.<ref>F. Fabbrini, ''Novissimo Digesto Italiano'', '''15''', 1968, p.510, s.v. ''Res divini iuris'' for a review; Festus s.v. spondere, p. 440 L.</ref>

Brent Vine's study<ref>''A Note on the Duenos Inscription'' 1997</ref> which focuses on the linguistic analysis of the word {{sc2|MITAT}} of the first sentence and of the segment {{sc2|EN()MANOMEINOM}} of the third lends support to such an interpretation: he argues that ''mitat'' would be a form of a frequentative verb ''mitare'' based on a past participle in -''to'' of an IE root ''*meɨ̯'', with the meaning of 'exchange'. Semantically this frequentative should be considered factitive, thence arriving at a verb that would mean 'to cause to be given in exchange', hence 'to give (in exchange)'. Vine's analysis of the segment {{sc2|EN()MANOMEINOM}} fits the hypothesis of an exchange of ''symbola'' equally  well. He argues that a word {{sc2|[M]EINOM}} could be isolated on the grounds of the single spelling of geminates which is considered normal by linguists for the archaic period. This he proposes to understand as reflecting a substantivised ''*méi̯-no-'', meaning 'something given in exchange, gift' from the same root ''*mei̯ '' as in {{sc2|MITAT}}.  This form would be a -''no'' substantive, a widely attested formation and may be presupposed by Latin ''mūnus, mūneris'' 'duty, service, office, offering', from immediate antecedent ''*mói̯-n-es-''. The appearance of ''mitat'' and ''[m]einom'' show a semantic contiguity and may constitute a [[figura etymologica]]. This alliterative form would be analogous to the Old Latin phrase ''donum do'', ''donum'' being formed exactly in the same way as supposed for ''[m]einom'' (''*déh3-no-''). ''*Meinom mito'' would have existed beside ''donum do'', both referring to similar but culturally distinct behaviours, the first one perhaps "specifically involving exchange/reciprocity".{{cite quote|date=November 2017|reason=It's unclear which source this phrase is supposed to ahve come from.}}

The document raises also the question of the kind of the marriage in question, and specifically of whether it was with or without ''[[Manus marriage|manus]]''. Dumézil supported the thesis of a marriage without loss the independent status of the woman (''sine capitis deminutio''). In the last case it should be admitted that in archaic times a form of marriage existed in which the ''sponsio'' was directly linked to the ''nuptiae'', independently from the initial constitution of the ''manus''. The  ''sponsalia'' would then be the occasion upon which the legal subjects defined the compacts concerning  the juridical and economic aspects of the marriage:<ref>Varro, ''Lingua Latina'', VI 70-71; Aulus Gellius, ''Noctes Atticae'', IV 4, 1; Ulpian apud ''Digesta'', XXIII 1, 2: "''Sponsalia dicta sunt a spondendo: nam moris fuit veteribus stipulari et spondere sibi uxores futuras''".</ref> the dowry, the future legal status of the woman who could be put under the ''potestas/tutela'' of one or more persons,<ref>Cf. Plautus ''Curc.'' 672.</ref> the compensations for  a passage of status of the woman and the guarantees for breach of promise. Two strata were perhaps present as testified by the expression ''more atque iure'' of Gellius.

Then the object in question could well have been deposited in a temple upon the occasion of a marriage ritual as a probatory document of an engagement undertaken not by the girl but by her ''sponsor''. The compact would be also a legal guarantee of the rights of the future bridegroom.

===The second section===

The most relevant issue for the interpretation of the document in Sacchi's view is the meaning the lexical couple {{sc2|DUENOS/DUENOI}}. The meaning of ''Duenos'' has been often considered to be the name of the craftsman who made the object. Such an interpretation  meets with the difficulty of how to explain the second occurrence of the word and with the problem of how to interpret {{sc2|MANOM}}, since if ''Duenos'' is a name identifying a person and qualifying  him as 'good' then it would be difficult to understand the use of ''manom'' in the same sense of 'good'. It should be easier to understand ''manom'' as ''manum'' ('hand'), i.e. reading: "Duenos made me with his own hands".

Sacchi, following Palmer and Colonna,<ref>R. E. A. Palmer above; G. Colonna above.</ref> proposes to interpret the couple as conveying a specifically technical religious and legal meaning as is testified in ancient sources. ''Duenos'' has given classic Latin ''bonus'', 'good',<ref>Paulus ex Festo s. v. Matrem Matutam, p. 109 L; Varro, LL VI 4; Varro, VII 26 "''Ian cusianes duonus ceruses duonus Ianusve''": Macrobius, ''Saturnalia'' I 3, 13.</ref> but originally the adjective had certainly religious and sacral implications: in the oldest sacral formulae it had a more technical acception and the repetition had other implications than just eurythmy. Colonna refers to the formula ''optumus duonorum'' of the mid republic which was a qualificative formula with sacral implication reserved to the upper classes. Correspondences are the opposition of the epithets ''Optimus'' and ''Maximus'' of Capitoline Jupiter, the early Faliscan ''Titia'' inscription "''Eco quton euotenosio titias duenom duenas. Salu[...]voltene''"<ref>To be read as: "''Eco quto*e votenosio titias duenom duenas salve[...]d voltene''" according  to Bakkum, ''The Latin Dialect of the Ager Faliscus: 150 Years of Scholarsahip'', Amsterdam, 2009, p. 409.</ref> interpreted as 'good among  the good', the epitaph of [[Lucius Cornelius Scipio (consul 259 BC)|Lucius Cornelius Scipio]], the  consul of 259 BC, ''duonoro[m] optumo[m]... viro[m]'' in which clearly the adjective ''duonus'' is not the synonym of ''optumus'', that as derived from ''ops'', plenty, has different semantic connotations. Colonna also reminds that "in the [[Carmen Saliare]] (similarly to the Duenos vase) ''bonus'' (''duonus'') and ''manus'' occur together, both referred to the same character, the god ''Cerus'', fact that makes their synonymity implausible".<ref>Cf. Festus s.v. ''Matrem Matutam'': "''... et in carmine Saliari Cerus manus intelligitur creator bonus''" p. 109 L; also  s. v. mane  p. 112 L; Varro ''Lingua Latina'' VII 26: "''ian cusianes duonus ceruses du(o)nus ianusve''"; Colonna, above, p. 168.</ref> In order to further clarify the use of the adjective in  the text, Sacchi makes reference also to a well-known passage of Cicero's ''De Legibus'' II 9, 22: ''Deorum Manium iura sancta sunto. (B)onos leto datos divos habento ...''. Here too as in the above two instances "one can remark the opposition between ''Manium'', that, as shown in Paulus exc. Festi, originally meant 'the good ones' and the qualificative (B)onos = Duenos as referred to the deified dead (= ''divos''). Cicero here relates a pontifical prescription of high antiquity consciously preserving  the original wise of expression and lexic".<ref>Cicero ''De Legibus'' II 7, 18.</ref> In other words, one could argue that it is not meant that the ''dii [[Manes]]'' become 'good' in the ethic sense, but rather that the dead consecrated to death according to the pontifical prescriptions (''leto datos'') do become gods (= ''divos'').<ref>O. Sacchi, above, p. 333; also citing Georges Dumézil, ''Idées romaines'', pp. 24-25: ''dueno-'' from ''dúvas'' 'cult, offering to a god', "later ''bonus'' used alone shall take up all other values"; A. Ernout and A. Meillet, ''Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue latine'', Paris, 1967, p. 73: "''*dwenos'' from root ''*du-'', technical religious term, Sanskrit ''dúvah'' = 'hommage' ... in Latin religious language ''di boni''"</ref> The epithet ''duenos''  would then design that which has been given in homage, consecrated correctly according to the pontifical ritual.

Sacchi opines that in the case of the Duenos inscription the speaker is acting according to the religious legal ritual, presumably enacting a private ''consecratio'': the formula of the dedication is then a case of private ''dedicatio dis'', dedication to the gods. The epithet ''duenos'' should therefore be interpreted as used in its original technical sense. The restitution of the text should thus be: "A party acting in the way sanctioned by religious law made/consecrated me for a good end. That no harm/fraud be done to me and to one who is a party (equally) religiously sanctioned by the gods".<ref>A better rendering might be: "... that no harm/fraud be done through me to one who is a party sanctioned by the gods".</ref> The vase is a speaking token that after the celebration of the ritual consecrates the content of the action, of which it is "the form in its probatory function and the matter as a constituent element".<ref>Taking into account Brent Vine's hypothesis about the interpretation of ''[m]einom'' as ''munus'' though the rendering of the text should be somewhat altered and interpreted as: "A '{{sc2|DUENOS}}' (as above) made me as a good (legal etc.) gift/offering/token, that no evil/harm be done through me to a '{{sc2|DUENOS}}{{'"}} or "that no evil party lay me to a '{{sc2|DUENOS}}{{'"}}.</ref>

Vine quotes German authors who still follow the erotic thread of interpretation. They think of the vase as a container for beauty products and interpret the last phrase {{sc2|NEMEDMALOSTATOD}} as 'let no evil person steal me'. "{{sc2|STATOD}} would be a form of a Latin verb ''*stare'' that failed to survive for its ''homonymie fâcheuse'' [unfortunate [[homonym]]y<nowiki />] with the ordinary verb for 'stand{{'"}}, as found in Hittite ''tāyezzi'' 'steals', Vedic ''stená-stāyú'' 'thief'.<ref>H. Rix, "Das letzte Wort der Duenos-Inschrif", MSS, '''46''', 1985, pp. 193 ff.; H. Eichner, "Reklameniamben aus Roms Königszeit", ''Die Sprache'', '''34''', 1988-90, p. 216.</ref>

Both Sacchi and Vine remark the striking parallelism between the formula of the Duenos inscription: {{sc2|QOIMED MITAT}} and the inscription on a pedestal (probably of a votive statue) from [[Tibur]]: {{sc2|HOI()MED()MITAT...D[O]NOM()PRO()FILEOD}}.<ref>R. Wachter, ''Altlateinische Inschriften'', Bern / Frankfurt am Mein / New York / Paris, 1987; M. Cristofani (ed.), ''La Grande Roma dei Tarquini (Catalogue of the Exhibition, Roma, 12 June to 30 September 1990)'', Rome: L'Erma di Bretscheider, 1990, {{ISBN|88-7062-684-9}}, p. 24.</ref> Vine finds in it support for his interpreting of {{sc2|[M]EINOM}} as meaning  ''munus''.

===Cosmis===
Sacchi rejects the interpretation of ''cosmis'' as ''agreeable'' in the first section that is traditionally accepted in the  scholarly literature, on the grounds of considerations of history of the language and semantics. He proposes to interpret the term as referring to the peculiar style of hairdressing of brides, known as  ''seni crines'' which would find support in Festus:<ref>Festus s.v. ''Comptus'', p. 55 L.</ref> "''Comptus id est ornatus ... qui apud nos comis: et comae dicuntur capilli cum aliqua cura compositi''", '<nowiki />''Comptus'', that is adorned, ... what we call ''comis''; and ''comae'' is named the hair dressed with a certain care'. In the inscription the use of this word would be an explicit allusion to the fact that the girl shall be ready to marry. Festus gives it as a most ancient custom for marriage ceremonies.<ref>Festus s. v. Senis crinibus, p. 454 L: "''Senis crinibus nubentes ornantur, quod [h]is ornatus vestustissimus fuit''".</ref> An analogous usage of the word ''comis'' is to be found in Gellius while relating the custom of ''flaminica dialis'' on the occasion of the [[Argei]].<ref>Aulus Gellius, ''Noct. Att.'', X 15, 30: "''... cum it ad Argeos, quod neque comit caput neque capillum depictit''".</ref>

==Earlier specimens of Old Latin==
The [[Praeneste fibula|Praenestine fibula]] is generally thought to be the earliest surviving evidence of the Latin language.<ref name="maras">{{cite journal |first=Daniele F. |last=Maras |title=Scientists declare the Fibula Praenestina and its inscription to be genuine 'beyond any reasonable doubt' |url= http://ancientstudies.fas.nyu.edu/docs/CP/963/EtruscanNewsVol14_2012_winter.pdf |journal=Etruscan News |volume=14 |date=Winter 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120224195235/http://ancientstudies.fas.nyu.edu/docs/CP/963/EtruscanNewsVol14_2012_winter.pdf |archive-date=24 February 2012}}</ref> The [[Lapis Niger]] inscription is another example of Old Latin dated to the period of Rome's monarchy, although scholars have had difficulty in their attempts to interpret the meaning of the texts in their surviving fragments.<ref>Johannes Stroux: ''[http://pao.chadwyck.co.uk/articles/displayItemFromId.do?QueryType=articles&ItemID=0215-1931-086-00-000016 Die Foruminschrift beim Lapis niger]'' In: Philologus Vol. 86 (1931), p. 460.{{dead link|date=February 2024}}</ref><ref>"Le ''juges auspicium'' et les incongruités du teureau attalé de Mugdala" in ''Nouvelle Clio'' '''5''' 1953 p. 249-266; "Sur l'inscription du Lapis niger" in ''Revue d'études latins'' '''36''' 1958 p. 109–111 and  '''37''' 1959 p. 102.</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==Further reading==
* [http://titus.fkidg1.uni-frankfurt.de/didact/idg/ital/duenosin.htm "Die {{sc2|DUENOS}}-Inschrift"] {{in lang|de}}: transcription and interpretation of the {{sc2|DUENOS}} inscription
* Larissa Bonfante, "Etruscan Life and Afterlife: A Handbook of Etruscan Studies", Wayne State University Press, Detroit, 1986
* Arthur Gordon, "[https://web.archive.org/web/20110717205201/http://webuser.unicas.it/linguistica/lorenzetti/LM_2009/Gordon_duenos.pdf Notes on the Duenos-Vase Inscription in Berlin]", ''California Studies in Classical Antiquity'', Vol. 8, 1975, pp.&nbsp;53–72.
* Arthur E. Gordon, ''Illustrated Introduction to Latin Epigraphy''. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1983 ([https://books.google.com/books?id=ywI6SDUggk4C&q=Duenos&pg=PR9 Google Books preview]).
* {{cite web|url=http://www.humnet.ucla.edu/pies/pdfs/IESV/1/BV_Duenos.pdf|title=A Note on the Duenos Inscription|last=Vine|first=Brent|access-date=20 September 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113182826/http://www.humnet.ucla.edu/pies/pdfs/IESV/1/BV_Duenos.pdf |archive-date= Jan 13, 2012 }}

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