The Palmyra Tariff is an ancient bilingual limestone inscription discovered in Palmyra, Syria. Dating to the 2nd century CE, the inscription provides valuable insights into the economic and political structure of the city and the wider Roman Empire. It is the longest lapidary Aramaic inscription ever found.[1]
Historian John Matthews described the tariff as "one of the most important single items of evidence for the economic life of any part of the Roman Empire".[4]
The inscription is known as PAT 0259, CIS II 3913, NSI 147 and TSSI IV 37.
Economic Regulation
The primary focus of the Palmyra Tariff Inscription is to outline the tariffs and duties imposed on a range of goods and commodities passing through Palmyra. These tariff rates were established to regulate trade and generate essential revenue for the city. The detailed information on specific tariffs offers a comprehensive view of the economic activities that contributed to Palmyra's prosperity.[5]
The inscription also enumerates the names of officials responsible for overseeing trade matters. This provides valuable insights into the administrative structure of Palmyra during the period.
Layout
i
ii
iii
iv
Greek Heading (Greek ii 1–2)
?
Aramaic Heading (Aramaic ii 1)
Main Greek Text (Greek i 1–13)
Aramaic ii c 100–148
Aramaic ii b 51–99
Aramaic ii a 2–50
Greek iii a 1–47
Greek iii b 48–93
Greek iii c 49–140
Greek iv a 141–97
Greek iv b 198–237
Main Aramaic Text (Aramaic i 1–11)
Greek i 14–15 inserted in Aramaic after line 11; Aramaic i 12–13 follow
Healey, John F. (2009). Aramaic Inscriptions and Documents of the Roman Period. Textbook of Syrian Semitic Inscriptions. Vol. 4. Oxford University Press. ISBN978-0-19-925256-5.
Gawlikowski, Michał (2011). Zych, Iwona; Szymczak, Agnieszka (eds.). "Palmyra: reexcavating the site of the Tariff (fieldwork in 2010 and 2011)". Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean. 23 (1). Warsaw University Press. ISSN1234-5415.
