Son of Baalshillek marble base explained

The Son of Baalshillek marble base is a Punic language inscription on a marble statue base discovered in 1856–58 at Carthage in Tunisia.

It was first published by Nathan Davis, and the one-line inscription is known as KAI 84 and CIS I 178.

Davis wrote that "This tablet is peculiar, as well for its material (white marble) as for its inscription. The plain square may have served as the base of a statuette,—the subject of the epitaph on the edges, of which two only have been preserved."^[1] It is held in the archives of the British Museum, as BM 125217.^[2]

Inscription

Nathan Davis initially translated it in Latin as follows: "vovit Baâl-Malek, filius Àchar, ob filium mortuum. [Ubi]? audiverit ejus vocem, ei benedicat."

The British Museum state two possible translations: "vow of Baalshillek son of 'Akbar for his son. May you hear his voice and bless him" or "vow of Baalshillek for his dead son. Hear his voice and bless him."^[2]

It is thought to be either evidence of a child sacrifice, a monument to a beloved son, or a vow for the health of a sick child.^[2]

Notes and References

1. Nathan Davis, 1863, Inscriptions in the Phœnician character, now deposited in the British Museum, discovered on the site of Carthage, during researches made by Nathan Davis, esq; at the expense of Her Majesty's government, in the years 1856, 1857, and 1858
2. Web site: White marble plinth with a dedicatory inscription on two edges, probably a statue base. .