VR-5

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Inscription
Transliteration:	kolịụeθu
Original script:
Object:	VR-5 vessel ()
Position:
Script:	North Italic script (Lugano alphabet)
Direction of writing:	sinistroverse
Number of letters:	8
Number of lines:	1
Craftsmanship:	incised
Current condition:	unknown
Date of inscription:
Date derived from:
Language:	Celtic
Meaning:	'Koliuedu' (PN) (?)
Alternative sigla:	PID 248 LIR VR-5 MLR sub iudice nr. 19
Sources:	Schumacher 2004: 172, 340 f.

Commentary

First published in Poggi 1879: 312 ff. (no. 52) / Poggi 1879b: 90 (no. 52). Lost.

Image in Poggi 1879: 312 (idealised rendering), Poggi 1879b (drawing = AIF I: Taf. 2,39 = LIR).

Poggi appears to be the only person to actually have seen object and inscription; all later accounts are based on his drawing as reproduced by Pauli. Pauli cites no. 52 on a page 90, which appears to refer to an independent publication of the article in the Giornale Ligustico referred to in the TIR bibliography. This article contains only idealised renderings of letters, rather than drawings. In the drawing reproduced by Pauli, beginning and end of the inscription appear to be unambiguous. Omikron is not quite closed in the bottom (Poggi 1879: 313). In the middle, Lambda and the three hastae following it are crossed by a long oblique line, which was judged to be an unntentional scratch by Poggi himself, Danielsson 1909: 23 and Rhŷs 1914: 69 ff., who consequently read . The dot between putative Upsilon and Epsilon was included as a punct by Danielsson, but dismissed by Poggi and Rhŷs. While Poggi did not dicscriminate between the various North Italic groups, both Danielsson and Rhŷs classified the inscription as Celtic. It was Whatmough who sorted it among the Raetic testimonies, based on the observations that Verona lies rather far east of the Lepontic realm, and that the form of Omikron was typical for Venetic. Disregarding Poggis reading, he preferred to include both scratch and punct, and suggested kolzi·eθu with a Venetic form of Zeta, despite himself observing that the Venetic features do not agree with the forms of Lambda and Upsilon. We prefer to stick with Poggis original reading.

Epigraphically, the inscription is quite obviously written in the Lugano alphabet, with Etruscoid Lambda and Upsilon, and Omega. According to Rhŷs' interpretation, a Celtic personal name.

Further references: CIL 5: 475 (no. 1080).