) Apollonius's work for Ptolemy II Philadelphus was recorded in considerable detail by his private secretary,
Zeno (or Zenon, ). In the course of his duties, Zeno made copious written records of various legal and financial transactions between citizens, as well as detailed descriptions of the construction of theatres, gymnasiums, palaces and baths of the new town of Philadelphia on the edge of
Faiyum. The documents were stored in an archive and lay forgotten for over 2100 years. During the winter of 1914-1915, a cache of over 2,000
papyrus documents was uncovered by Egyptian agricultural labourers who were digging for
sebakh near
Kôm el-Kharaba el-Kebir. Upon examination by
Egyptology scholars, these documents were found to be records written by Zeno in
Greek and
Demotic. These papyri, now referred to as the
Zenon Archive or the
Zenon Papyri, have provided historians with a detailed record of Apollonius's role and of 3rd-century BC Philadelphia society and economy. The papyri, now referred to as the
Zenon Archive or the
Zenon Papyri, were translated into English by the British
papyrologists
Campbell Cowan Edgar and
Arthur Surridge Hunt. ==References==