Global InformationAin Nechma inscriptions information
| Ain Nechma inscriptions | |
|---|---|
 Delamare's sketch (plate 187) of the Guelma Punic inscriptions | |
| Writing | Punic |
| Discovered | 1837 |
The Ain Nechma inscriptions, also known as the Guelma inscriptions are a number of Punic language inscriptions, first found in 1837 in the necropolis of Ain Nechma, in the Guelma Province of Algeria (ancient Calama).
By the early 20th century, about 40 such inscriptions had been discovered - they had become well known in Semitic epigraphy due to their unique use of certain turns of phrase and unique form given to some letters of the Punic-Phoenician alphabet.[1]
A number of the most notable inscriptions have been collected in Kanaanäische und Aramäische Inschriften, and are known as are known as KAI 166–169.
The inscriptions are in the Louvre, the Musée archéologique de Narbonne, and other locations.
- ^ Chabot, 1916, p.483: "Guelma rappelle le nom et représente le site de l'antique Calama. Dans cette localité et dans la nécropole voisine appelée Ain Nechma, on a recueilli une quarantaine d'inscriptions néopuniques qui forment un groupe spécial, caractérisé par l'emploi de certuines tournures et par la forme particulière donnée à quelques signes de l'alphabet.