CIMRM Supplement - Limestone relief, probably from Salona. Split, Croatia.

Very worn miniature tauroctony, of limestone, from Salona. Not listed in the CIMRM. Museum sign reads:

Votive tablet, Mithras, limestone, 3rd c. AD, Salona.

Abstract of Silnović Nirvana article:

A miniature relief representing the scene of tauroctony, i.e. Mithras killing the bull, is on display in the Archaeological Museum in Split. Despite its visibility, the relief has so far remained unpublished. It is therefore the aim of this article to provide the detailed description of the object, and to contextualize it within the broader framework of “small and miniature reproductions of the Mithraic icon”. Based on this, the original provenance and dating of the miniature relief are proposed. Furthermore, the relief is taken as a fine example of interconnectedness of social, material, and religious mobility in “globalizing Roman world”. The final part of the article discusses the psychological effectiveness of miniature Mithraic reliefs, suggesting their possible role as memory aids.

Bibliography

• Silnović Nirvana, To Carry the Universe in One's Own Pocket: A Miniature Mithraic Relief from the Archaeological Museum in Split, Acta Antiqua Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae, 58 (2018), 291–304. (Paywalled) https://doi.org/10.1556/068.2018.58.1-4.18