This paper presents a new analysis and translation of the Linear A inscription KO Za 1 from the peak sanctuary of Mount Kophinas in southern Crete. The inscription is engraved on a small quadrangular stone pedestal associated with a libation installation and preserves a complete ritual formula distributed across all four sides of the object. The study combines epigraphic observation, archaeological context, internal corpus comparison, and comparative linguistic analysis. Particular attention is devoted to the hapax adjective TU-RU-SA and to the revised identification of sign A314 as BA. Several recurring expressions of the Linear A libation corpus, including A-TA-I-JO-WA-JA, U-NA-KA-NA-SI, I-PI-NA-MA, and SI-RU-TE, are re-examined within the context of the Kophinas inscription and compared with parallel formulae attested elsewhere in the corpus. The resulting interpretation identifies the text as a ritual invocation addressed to the “Turian Father of the Bull-Contest” in the cave of Ida. The inscription combines divine invocation, sacred geography, ritual lamentation, libation offering, and a concluding optative wish within a highly structured ceremonial formula: “Turian Father of the Bull-Contest in the cave of Ida, weep, so that the libation offering may flow in streams!” Beyond the interpretation of a single inscription, KO Za 1 provides additional evidence for the remarkable consistency of the language and ritual vocabulary preserved in the Linear A libation texts. The inscription contributes to the reconstruction of a shared liturgical tradition in Bronze Age Crete and further illuminates the relationship between lamentation, libation, and sacred geography within Minoan religious practice.
Michael Schuemann (Mon,) studied this question.