Читать книгу The Journey: How an obscure Byzantine Saint became our Santa Claus - David Price Williams - Страница 95

another sun disk flanked by two bull’s horns. Apollodorus genuflected and sidled swiftly around to the back where a heavily-painted young woman in a diaphanous green and gold robe whom I assume was a cult priestess was standing. She held up her right hand in greeting.

“Welcome Apollodorus. Welcome to the Temple of Isis and Horus. What is your will?”

“Ah, Mother of Wisdom, I need to formalise a contract with this young man here. If you would be so kind as to witness it and deposit it in your archives, I will of course make the usual offering to the goddess.”

Saying this, they moved into a small office-like room behind the cult statue, where the priestess drew out a pristine sheet of papyrus and handed it to Apollodorus, pointing to a stylus on the nearby table. He sat and wrote for several minutes in a language I didn’t recognise but assumed was demotic Egyptian and then he wrote a brief passage in Greek at the bottom to the effect that I was to act as his agent in a particular incense transaction in Arabia. There was no specific amount of money identified at this stage on Apollodorus’ side of the bargain but upon delivery he would pay what he thought fit. He must have expected me to return to claim the money. He re-read the contract, handed the stylus for me to sign too and then gave it to the priestess who added her own very ornate appellation at

DAVID PRICE WILLIAMS