E01966: Greek building inscription just possibly for a church dedicated to a saint *Kosmas. Found at Umm Hartaine to the east of Apamea on the Orontes and Ḥamāh/Amathe (central Syria). Probably 5th-7th c.

Two conjoining and one loose fragment of a lintel. Dimensions of the first two fragments: H. 0.53 m; W. 1.82 m; of the third fragment: H. 0.36 m; W. 0.72 m. The inscription is divided into three phrases, the first is written within a frame, the other two have the form of monograms. The first two phrases are probably invocations of Jesus and the Son of God. The last one was expanded by William Prentice as Κοσμᾶ/'Of Kosmas'. If so, our inscription could commemorate the construction of a church dedicated to Kosmas/Cosmas, a physician martyr in Syria and brother of Damianos (S00385). This interpretation is, of course, disputable, as the actual meaning of the last monogram is not clear and the figure is apparently not named ἅγιος/'saint'. Also Kosmas was usually venerated together with his brother and his individual cult seems unlikely.

Another possibility is that we have here the name of the donor or founder of a building.

If the inscription does refer to a saint Kosmas, it is possible that Kosmas, a local martyr of Sekizlar (near Manbij and al-Bab in north Syria) is the saint mentioned here. This Kosmas apparently died under the emperor Trajan and is attested by a single Syriac inscription (see: $E01968).

See also $E04563.