Primary source · Koine Greek, on papyrus
The Decian Libelli (certificates of sacrifice)
Chancery of Emperor Decius (formulaic) · AD 250
What this text is
The paperwork of the first universal persecution: Decius's edict itself is lost, but dozens of the certificates it demanded survive from Egypt — each swearing the bearer had 'always sacrificed to the gods' and had done so again before the commission.
Public-domain translations
After J. R. Knipfing's renderings (1923)
To those chosen to superintend the sacrifices, from Aurelia Bellias and her daughter: we have always been constant in sacrificing to the gods, and now, in your presence, in accordance with the edict's terms, I have sacrificed, poured libation, and tasted the offerings, and I ask you to certify this below.
Manuscript witnesses
P.Oxy. LVIII 3929 and the libelli corpus
AD 250 (originals)These are not copies: over forty signed certificates survive on papyrus, mostly from Theadelphia — the very paperwork of the persecution Cyprian fought.
Vatican, Pap. gr. 12 (libellus of June 250)
AD 250 (original)A woman's certificate, witnessed and docketed, now in the Vatican Library.
Provenance
Egypt, June–July AD 250 — original certificates of the Decian sacrifice
Editions & scholarship
Critical editions and standard translations behind the text above.
- The Libelli of the Decian Persecution (HTR 16)John R. Knipfing, 1923The classic corpus edition with translations.
- The Decree of Decius and the Religion of Empire (JRS 89)James B. Rives, 1999The standard modern analysis of the edict.