Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 281 (P. Oxy. 281 or P. Oxy. II 281) is a fragment of a Complaint against a Husband, in Greek. It was discovered in Oxyrhynchus. The manuscript was written on papyrus in the form of a sheet. It is dated between years 20-50. Currently it is housed in the library of the Royal Holloway College in Surrey.[1]
Description
The document was written by Syra, a woman, and was addressed to Heraclides, a priest and chief justice.[1] It is a petition addressed to the archidikastes by a woman who had been deserted by her husband, and who wished to recover the dowry which she had brought him on her marriage.[2]
The measurements of the fragment are 181 by 93 mm.[2]
This papyrus was discovered by Grenfell and Hunt in 1897 in Oxyrhynchus. It was found with 283, 294, and a number of other documents dated in the reigns of Tiberius, Gaius, and Claudius, and belongs to the same period.[2]
The text was published by Grenfell and Hunt in 1899.[2]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: B. P. Grenfell; A. S. Hunt (1899). Oxyrhynchus Papyri II. London: Egypt Exploration Fund.
