Dioscurus

ID:

20736

Production date:

Roman

Location:

In Store

The Dioscurus (whether Castor or Pollux is uncertain) stands frontally, wearing pileus and a cloak attached by a clasp at his left shoulder. He is otherwise nude. The god has youthful features and the long cascading locks appear from under a cap. The body is thick set and the musculature is defined, especially on the torso. He grasps a spear in his right hand. His mount wears an elaborate harness of which the back portion can be seen, though much more would have been visible, no doubt, if the rest of the horse had been preserved.  < ...Read more

The Dioscurus (whether Castor or Pollux is uncertain) stands frontally, wearing pileus and a cloak attached by a clasp at his left shoulder. He is otherwise nude. The god has youthful features and the long cascading locks appear from under a cap. The body is thick set and the musculature is defined, especially on the torso. He grasps a spear in his right hand. His mount wears an elaborate harness of which the back portion can be seen, though much more would have been visible, no doubt, if the rest of the horse had been preserved.

The figures stand on a platform and against a flat background. The back is roughly hewn and was clearly not meant to be seen. This section is probably from a larger relief carving.

Found at a distance of 20m south of the temple of Mithras in the Walbrook valley, the sculpture is not directly associated with the mithraeum or the other sculptures discovered there. It may belong to a later phase of use on the Mithraic site associated with Bacchus, or more likely suggests the existence of a temple of the Disocuri nearby: mithraea are known to be located within religious localities near other temples (see M.Henig, Appendix 1, pp. 230-232 in J.Shepherd (1998) 'The Temple of Mithras, London'). < Hide

Measurements

H 610 mm; W 340 mm; D 170 mm (overall)

Materials

stone; limestone

Last Updated

2024-03-14