Skip to main content Skip to footer

About this object

  • ID:

    A16933

  • Production date:

    Roman; late 2nd-early 3rd century

  • Location:

    In Store

  • Relief sculpture relating to the Roman god Mithras. The central medallion depicts Mithras slaying a bull, who is also being attacked by a dog, scorpion and snake. Mithras is flanked by his companions, Cautes, with his torch raised, and Cautopates, with his lowered. Around the circular border are the 12 signs of the zodiac. The sun (Sol) and moon (Luna) are depicted in the top corners, and the two wind gods in the bottom. The inscription is squeezed into any available space and was probably added later. It reads: Ulpi|us | Silva|nus | emeri|tus leg(ionis) | II Aug(ustae) | votum | solvit | fac|tus | Arau|sione, meaning ‘Ulpius Silvanus, veteran of the second Augustan legion, paid his vow: he was initiated at Orange’. It is unclear as to whether this refers to Ulpius Silvanus’s initiation into the army or the cult of Mithras at Orange in southern France. However, he was evidently a major patron of the London temple to Mithras. It has been suggested that he may have been the owner of the house behind which the temple was built.
     < ...Read more

  • Measurements

    H 432 mm; W 508 mm; D 114 mm (overall), WT 64121g (64kg) (overall)

  • Materials

    stone; marble

  • Last Updated

    2024-03-14

FURTHER INFORMATION
  • NUMBER OF ITEMS

    1

  • STATUS

    permanent collection

  • COPYRIGHT HOLDER

    digital image copyright Museum of London

?

Record quality:

What is this?

Not every record in Collections Online is complete. Some have low quality images designed purely for recognition, while some have been catalogued only to a basic standard. This graphic is designed to give you an impression of the quality of data you can see. 100% meets all our current data standards and has a high quality image, 20% is a basic record with no image. Individual record quality can change over time as new photography is carried out and records are worked on.

X