New perspectives on Minaean expiatory texts

Abstract

During the excavations of the Italian Archaeological Mission at Barāqish (directed by A. de Maigret in 1990-1992 and 2000-2006) new texts related to the confession of sins were discovered. This new epigraphic documentation can help us better to define certain religious and social aspects within South Arabia in the first millennium BC. One of the main issues that the study concentrates on is the relationship between the confession/expiation and a given divinity, with particular attention paid to the role of the god Nakraḥ, who is often connected with these confessions, and whose cult was particularly widespread in the Barāqish area and its environs. The new text Y.03.B.A.1, presented here, provides an opportunity to synthesize the state of play regarding this ritual. It also gives an indication of two divinities previously unknown in the Minaean pantheon.