Overview
Three fragments of two inscribed paving slabs, originally one of three adjoining slabs, from the paved square east of the stage building of Corinth's theatre. The Latin letters were bronze inlays set into cuttings; the bronze is gone and only the cuttings and two punctuation marks remain.
The text reads: [praenomen nomen] Erastus pro aedilit[at]e s(ua) p(ecunia) stravit - '[...] Erastus, in return for his aedileship, laid (this pavement) at his own expense.' The left slab carrying the first part of his name is lost; about seven letters stood before 'Erastus'.
The first published report (Shear, AJA 1929) called Erastus a procurator because the text was incomplete; the full reading as aedile came only after the 1947 fragment. Whether this aedile is the Erastus 'oikonomos of the city' of Romans 16:23 is the live question.
In its own words
[...] Erastus pro aedilit[at]e s(ua) p(ecunia) stravit - '[...] Erastus, for his aedileship, laid (the pavement) at his own expense'Latin text and translation as printed in D. W. J. Gill, Tyndale Bulletin 40 (1989) 293, after J. H. Kent, Corinth VIII.3 (1966) no. 232 (modern scholarly translation, quoted briefly)
What the evidence shows
- Language is Latin, not Greek; office named is aedile (aedilitas), not treasurer.
- Letters were bronze inlay; only the cuttings survive, 0.18 m high.
- Name preserved: the cognomen Erastus only; praenomen and nomen lost on the missing left slab.
- Found in three campaigns: 1928, 1929, 1947; studies before 1947 lacked the full text (Gill 1989, n. 1).
- The inscription carries no date formula.
- Romans 16:23 calls Erastus ὁ οἰκονόμος τῆς πόλεως; the stone's title is aedile. The equation of the two titles is itself disputed.
Open questions
- Same man as Rom 16:23? J. H. Kent (Corinth VIII.3, 1966, p. 99) held the identification 'still seems sound' because he dated the pavement to the mid-1st century, the cognomen Erastus was uncommon at Corinth, and oikonomos could render aedile (as summarized by Gill 1989). H. J. Cadbury (JBL 50, 1931) and A. G. Roos (Mnemosyne 1930) objected that a Christian holding a pagan-linked magistracy was unlikely (Gill 1989, n. 29).
- Title equivalence: J. K. Goodrich (NTS 56, 2010, 90-115), relying on a new inscription from the Achaean colony of Patras, argues oikonomos tes poleos = quaestor, a post held by the economic elite, and rebuts the arcarius (slave treasurer) and aedile equations.
- Date and publication record: S. J. Friesen ('The Wrong Erastus', in Corinth in Context, Brill 2010, 231-256) states 'the inscription was incorrectly published and the identification of the two Erastus references is wrong'; per Goodrich (NTS 57, 2011, 583-593) Friesen argues the Romans Erastus was an unbelieving public slave. Goodrich 2011 replies, and also answers A. Weiss's claim that Corinth had no municipal quaestorship. Friesen's specific re-dating evidence is not accessible for this entry.
Sources
- D. W. J. Gill, 'Erastus the Aedile', Tyndale Bulletin 40:2 (1989) 293-301, DOI 10.53751/001c.30545 link study
- J. H. Kent, Corinth VIII.3: The Inscriptions 1926-1950 (Princeton: ASCSA, 1966), pp. 99-100, pl. 21, no. 232 link editio princeps
- S. J. Friesen, 'The Wrong Erastus: Ideology, Archaeology, and Exegesis', in S. J. Friesen, D. N. Schowalter, J. C. Walters (eds), Corinth in Context (Leiden: Brill, 2010), 231-256, DOI 10.1163/ej.9789004181977.i-506.52 link study
- J. K. Goodrich, 'Erastus, Quaestor of Corinth: The Administrative Rank of ὁ οἰκονόμος τῆς πόλεως (Rom 16.23) in an Achaean Colony', New Testament Studies 56:1 (2010) 90-115, DOI 10.1017/S0028688509990142 link study
- J. K. Goodrich, 'Erastus of Corinth (Romans 16.23): Responding to Recent Proposals on his Rank, Status, and Faith', New Testament Studies 57:4 (2011) 583-593, DOI 10.1017/S0028688511000063 link study
Corrected from the earlier edition of this page
- Old entry: 'Greek text: Erastus, treasurer of the city...' and 'Script: Greek'. The inscription is Latin, and the office is aedile, not treasurer (Kent no. 232; Gill 1989).
- Old entry: 'Discovery: 1929'. Pieces came to light in 1928, 1929 and 1947; the full text was not available until 1947 (Gill 1989).
- Old entry: 'Dimensions: Approximately 30 cm x 40 cm' and 'stone slab'. The slabs are c. 0.66 x 2.27 m each, with 0.18 m letters, part of a 6.81 m-wide pavement (Gill 1989).
- Old entry: 'Current Location: In situ' while the overview says 'housed in the Archaeological Museum of Corinth'. These contradict; only the in-situ find of the complete slab is attested in the sources read.
- Old entry: 'Confirms biblical Romans 16:23 reference'. Romans calls Erastus oikonomos; the stone says aedile; identity and date are disputed (Kent 1966 vs Friesen 2010; Goodrich 2010/2011).
- Old entry: '2 Timothy 4 (Erastus left in charge)'. 2 Tim 4:20 says only that Erastus 'remained at Corinth'. 'Acts 19 (Paul in Corinth)': Acts 19 is set in Ephesus; 19:22 sends Erastus to Macedonia.
2024–2026 check incomplete: limited: Web-search budget for this session ran out before a dedicated 2024-2026 sweep for this entry; no 2024-2026 publication surfaced in the sources fetched. Treat 'no updates' as unconfirmed