Exorcisms, oaths, and invocations in Greek and Latin curse tablets, funerary inscriptions, and amulets. Some preliminary results

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One of the persistent features of ancient Greek and Latin curse tablets is the use of various adjuration formulae introduced by ὁρκίζω/adiuro and their compounds. These are very well attested, with no less than 68 Greek and 12 Latin defixiones extant. On a syntactic level, adjuration formulae may be simple (ὁρκίζω/adiuro followed by the accusative) or complex (reinforced with a mediation syntagma, usually introduced by κατά/per, or having other additional elements, such as a promise of a reward for the fulfilment of the adjuring party’s wishes or a sanction for a failure to comply). The primary addressee of the adjuration formula is usually the ghost of an untimely dead person, compelled to fulfil the wishes of the beneficiary of the curse. This adjuration formula is, however, attested also in other contexts, sometimes with a markedly different function, as we find in Christian epitaphs and other funerary inscriptions as well as on magical amulets. In our contribution, we present an overview of the structure and performative function of the adjuration formula in Greek and Latin epigraphical documentation from its earliest attestations up to the end of Late Antiquity and beyond.