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Seikilos Epitaph The First Musical Composition Ancient Greece 100 AC

The Seikilos epitaph is carved in marble stele dated 100 AC from Ancient Greece

Did you know that the Seikilos epitaph is carved in marble stele, or a column, with poetry and music that is the oldest surviving complete music composition?

seikilos-marble-stele-the-socalled-seikilos-column-with-poetry-and-musical-notation-ancient-greek

Seikilos Epitaph The First Musical Composition Ancient Greece 100 AC at the Museum of Denmark

The melody with lyrics, in the ancient Greek musical notation, was found engraved on a tombstone from the Hellenistic town Tralles, not far from Ephesus in Turkey. The Epitaph was discovered in 1883 by Sir W. M. Ramsay, since it was lost to be rediscovered in 1922, Its base was sawn off straight so that it could stand as a pedestal for flowerpots. In 1966, it was acquired by the Museum of Denmark.

It is a Hellenistic song written in the Ionic dialect, that for me these days rings a bell as Eastern Greece or Alexander the Great or Macedonia or the famous Ancient Egyptian Rossetta Stone (with its 3 languages inscription) and many Ancient Greek scripts found in ancient Greek colonies in Egypt, Malta, Sicily.

In Greek The raw transcription of its text is as follows:

 

The Seikilos score Ancient Greek Epitaph of Seikilos lyrics and ancient musical score 100 AC

The Seikilos score Ancient Greek Epitaph of Seikilos lyrics and ancient musical score 100 AC

ΕΙΚΩΝ Η ΛΙΘΟΣ / ΕΙΜΙ ∙ ΤΙΘΗΣΙ ΜΕ / ΣΕΙΚΙΛΟΣ ΕΝΘΑ / ΜΝΗΜΗΣ ΑΘΑΝΑΤΟΥ / ΣΗΜΑ ΠΟΛΥΧΡΟΝΙΟΝ

Εἰκὼν ἤ λίθος εἰμί. τίθησί με Σεικίλος ἔνθα μνήμης ἀθανάτου σῆμα πολυχρόνιον.

eikṑn ḗ líthos eimí. títhēsí me Seikílos éntha mnḗmēs athanátou sêma poluXrónion.

Our Translation

An Icon “H Lithaos” I am, carved by Seikilos for ΕΝΘΑ as a never-to-die sign of immortality.

The music peace is the first HOSANA ever composed to Life itself!

ΟΣΟΝ ΖΗΣ ΦΑΙΝΟΥ / ΜΗΔΕΝ ΟΛΩΣ ΣΥ / ΛΥΠΟΥ ΠΡΟΣ / ΟΛΙΓΟΝ ΕΣΤΙ ΤΟ ΖΗΝ / ΤΟ ΤΕΛΟΣ Ο ΧΡΟΝΟΣ ΑΠΑΙΤΕΙ

ΣΕΙΚΙΛΟΣ ΕΥΤΕΡ

Greek as you hear it... 

hóson zêis, phaínou mēdèn hólōs sù lupoû pròs olígon ésti tò zên tò télos ho khrónos apaiteî.

The word hosanna (Latin osanna, Greek ὡσαννά, hōsanná) is from Hebrew hôšîʿâ-nā or Aramaic ōsha-nā meaning 'save, rescue, savior'. A type of “Pomiluj” in Slavic, HoSoN D|Ž

φαίνω • (phaínō) F-N-Š

- I cause to appear, bring to light; I show, uncover, reveal

- I make known, reveal, disclose

- Ι show forth, expound

- I shine, give light

- I come into being

“Hosana or Shine (DŽ) or Be (sein), MHDeN (M-Had non-existant), without “ološ” being entire, perfect, complete, Lipo Prosi, beautifuly pray, ΟΛΙΓΟΝ ΕΣΤΙ ΤΟ ΖΗΝ, life passes while eating and not-moving (zen), ΤΕΛΟΣ Ο ΧΡΟΝΟΣ ΑΠΑΙΤΕΙ, the body and spirit vanish.

One of the interpretation of this ancient melody and song... 

also

The Oldest known Melody is from 1400 BC, it is called Hurrian Hymn no.6 

 

Lingua Maltese Studio Storico Etnografico e Filolgico by Caruana published in 1896

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