It is with great pleasure that I offer this short article in tribute to Professor Gadd who, among his many notable contributions to the history of the early Near East, has added much to our knowledge of the ancient city of Taima.

The following inscription from Taima was brought to my notice by Mr. J. E. Dayton; he generously provided me with a photograph that he had taken when he visited the site in 1965 (Plate XXXVII, a). Subsequently my colleague, Dr. A. K. Irvine, informed me that the inscription had already been edited and published by Dr. Ruth Stiehl in F. Altheim and Stiehl, Die Araber in der alten Welt V/i (1968), 74ff. Nevertheless, the text merits, I believe, reconsideration, for at important points both my decipherment and my interpretation differ radically from those of Dr. Stiehl. I am grateful to Dr. Irvine for his judicious comments on this article before its publication; but he is, of course, in no way responsible for the views expressed in it.