This relief is virtually a counterpart to that of yesterday's post with a few more details. The representations of Mithras, the bull, the dog, the scorpion, the serpent, and the busts of the astral gods at the upper corners are quite similar. The main difference is the presence of the two torchbearers, Cautes (raising the torch) and Cautopates (lowering the torch), at the sides of the slaughter scene.
The slab had been mutilated by local shepherds and smashed into more than seven fragments. Today, the pieces are mounted on a rectangular bed of pinkish concrete. Details of the relief, such as the faces, are damaged. The surface is entirely covered by a thick mauve patina.
Provenance: Si'a. The relief was found in the debris of a building with two Corinthian capitals to the north of the main site.
Era: 3rd century CE.
Substance: basalte.
Dimensions: H 112 cm, W 106 cm, D (relief) 4.5 cm.
Text: adapted from Weber (p. 113).
Collection: National Museum of Damascus.
Thomas M. Weber. Sculptures from Roman Syria in the Syrian National Museum of Damascus. Vol I, from Cities and Villages in Central and Southern Syria. Wernersche Verlagsgesellschaft. Worms. 2006.
Sélim et Andrée Abdul-Hak. Catalogue Illustré du Département des antiquités Gréco-Romaines au Musée de Damas, 1951.
Ernest Will. Nouveaux monuments sacrés de la Syrie romaine. Syria. Archéologie, Art et histoire Année 1952 29-1-2 pp. 67-78.
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