Rafał Taubenschlag
"Un nouveau document sur la
’donatio ante nuptias’ P. Mich.
508-2217", F. de Visscher, "Chronique
d’Egypte", no 37, 1944 : [recenzja]
The Journal of Juristic Papyrology 3, 162
162 JOURNAL OF PAPYROLOGY
A. P . C H R I S T O P H I L O P O U L O S , Οοδέπω ών των ετών (Άνατόπωσις εκ τού αφιερώματος εις Κονσταντίνον "Ακαντον, A t h e n s 1940). I n this article t h e a u t h o r c o m b a t s m y opinion in Sav. Z. 37,195 t h a t ούοέπω ών των ετών d e t e r m i n e s infantes u n d e r seven y e a r s a n d asserts t h a t this p h r a s e m e a n s t h e same as ών iv ήλικί^ =
minor (cf. m y Law I 111бб).
H . F R . J O L O W I C Z , The wicked guardian ( R e p r . f r o m t h e
Jour-nal of Roman Studies vol. X X X V I I (1947), 8 2 - 9 0 ) .
Uncles are t h e c o m m o n e s t g u a r d i a n s in all ages a n d t h e i r per-f i d y is a t y p i c a l e x a m p l e oper-f h u m a n wickedness. A m o n g t h e m who suspected t h e m m o s t were, according t o our t r a d i t i o n s , t h e ancient law givers of Greece; for g u a r d i a n s h i p a n d t h e c o n n e c t e d s u b j e c t of second marriages occupy q u i t e a noticeable place in t h e s c a n t y records of b o t h legislators Solon (Diogenes L a e r t i u s I 56) a n d C h a r o n d a s (Diodorus X I I 15). A f t e r h a v i n g e x a m i n e d t h e t r a d i t i o n a l sources a n d t h e p a p y r i , t h e a u t h o r comes t o t h e conclusion t h a t t h e evil r e p u t a t i o n of g u a r d i a n s was n o t j u s t i f i e d b y t h e f a c t s k n o w n t o us as f a r as a n y m e n a c e t o t h e life of t h e w a r d is concerned. W e f i n d in A t h e n s as well in t h e p a p y r i t h a t — t h o u g h g u a r d i a n s are o f t e n accused of d i s h o n e s t y a n d r a p a c i t y — charges of personal i l i t r e a t m e n t h a r d l y occur. T h e alleged principles of C h a r o n d a s f i n d little s u p p o r t in t h e law a n d legal p r a c t i c e of Greece a n d E g y p t . W e h a v e no real çvidence t h a t either s t e p - m o t h e r s or g u a r d i a n s were practically evil a n d especially t h e r e is non evidence t h a t g u a r d i a n s were in t h e h a b i t of a t t e m p t i n g t o m u r d e r their w a r d s , w h e n e v e r this a p p e a r e d t o be in their own i n t e r e s t . B u t only on such an a s s u m p t i o n is t h e rule a t t r i b u t e d to C h a r o n d a s really j u s t i f i e d a n d t h e a s s u m p t i o n belongs t o l i t t é r a t u r e n o t t o life. F . D E V I S S C H E R , Un nouveau document sur la «donatio ante
nup-tias» P . Mich. 5 0 8 - 2 2 1 7 . (Chronique ďEgypte № 37 (1944)
p p 1 0 1 - 1 0 7 ) .
T h e most ancient k n o w n i n s t a n c e of a R o m a n donatio ante
nup-tias was until r e c e n t l y a rescript of A n t o n i n u s P i u s in D 6, 2, 12 pr.
O u r d o c u m e n t proves t h e existence of this R o m a n c u s t o m n e a r l y half a c e n t u r y earlier ( a b o u t 100 A.D.).
Y. A R A N G I O R U I Z , Parerga, note papirologiche ed epigrafiche (Napoli 1945).
