CINCINNATI, OHIO—A document written in Greek on papyrus some 1,600 years ago has been deciphered by Kyle Helms of the University of Cincinnati. The partial document is a labor contract for a guard hired to protect a vineyard in Egypt, which is known to have been a difficult job from other sources that describe thieves who beat watchmen in order to obtain ripe fruit. “I agree that I have made a contract with you on the condition that I guard your property, a vineyard near the village Panoouei, from the present day until vintage and transport, so that there be no negligence, and on the condition that I receive in return pay for all of the aforementioned time…” reads Helms’ translation, according to Live Science. The amount the guard would have been paid is lost, but the contract does include the first mention of the village of Panoouei. Scholars do not know exactly where the village was located.
