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(No. 70) dedicated to Zeus Lykaeos (Zeus "the wolf-god") by Trygon; and the elaborate axe-head (No. 71; fig. 22), found in Calabria, which bears an inscription recording that it was vowed to Hera of the plain by Kyniskos, "a butcher," as a tenth of his profits (sixth century B.C.).1

The two bronze bulls (Nos. Greeks to an Egyptian deity.

FIG. 22.-BRONZE VOTIVE AXE-HEAD (No. 71). Ht. 6 in.

72 and 73) are offerings made by They were dedicated by Greeks named respectively Sokydes and Theodoros, and represent the sacred bull Apis, worshipped at Memphis in Egypt as an incarnation of the god Ptah. The offering of Sokydes is here illustrated (fig. 23).2 Notice the elaborate saddle-cloth, and the wings of the Egyptian scarabaeus and hawk engraved on the bull's back. The date of these bronzes is the late sixth or early fifth century B.C. The Greeks must have become acquainted with the worship of Apis in the seventh century B.C., when they served King Psammetichos I. as mercenaries. That monarch was a fervent worshipper of the god, and built a great temple for him at Memphis. Herodotus 3 mentions the courts where the bull was kept, and says that the Greeks called him "Epaphos."

The bull dedicated by Sokydes was found in the Nile Delta, that dedicated by Theodoros at Athens.

The two bronze wheels in Case 103 each bear a votive inscription. The earlier (No. 74), said to have been found near Argos, was perhaps an offering to the Dioscuri (Castor and Pollux, the divine patrons of athletic contests) by Eudamos, a Γυνισμός με ανέθηκε

1 Τᾶς Ηρας ἱαρὸς ἐμὶ τᾶς ἐν πεδίῳ. ὥρταμος Γέργων | δεκάταν.

2 Inscribed: Τῷ Πάνεπί μ' ἀνέστασε Σωκύδης. 3 ii. 153.

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FIG. 23.-BRONZE VOTIVE BULL (No. 72). Ht. 4 in.

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FIG. 24.-BRONZE WHEEL DEDICATED TO KABEIROS AND THE CHILD (No. 75). Diam. 37 in.

victor in a chariot race. The other (No. 75) comes from the temple of the Kabeiri at Thebes, and is dedicated by Xenon and Pyrrhippa to Kabeiros and the Child (fig. 24). The bronze bell (No. 76) is from the same temple, and was likewise offered by one Pyrrhias to Kabeiros and the Child (fig. 25). The Kabeiri were deities of a mystic and subterranean character, who at Thebes apparently became closely connected with Dionysos, the

wine-god. That a large element of burlesque entered into their worship can be seen from the vases discovered on the site of their shrine (Second Vase Room, Case 7, B 77 and 78).

Most of the votive objects so far described bear Greek inscriptions. One in Oscan (No. 77) on a votive tablet found at Agnone (Bovianum Vetus) in the Samnite territory serves as a transition to the Roman dedications. The tablet, apparently of about 200 B.C., is inscribed on both sides, and seems to give a list of statues of deities, some, such as Vezkei, peculiar to the Samnites, others, such as Ceres and Hermes, of widely spread worship. It is a most important monument of the Oscan dialect, a language spoken by the early Italic tribes whose chief centre was the mountainous country above Campania.

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FIG. 25.-BRONZE BELL DEDIICATED TO KABEIROS AND THE CHILD (No. 76). 1:2.

Near this tablet are several Roman dedications. Three curious silver-gilt plaques, probably of the second century after Christ (Nos. 78-80), found at Heddernheim, near Frankfurt-on-Main, were dedicated to Jupiter Dolichenus. At first merely a local god, originating in the town of Doliche in Commagene, near the Euphrates, he later acquired considerable popularity throughout the Roman Empire, and his worship was carried far and wide by the Roman legionaries, who were largely instrumental in conveying these Oriental worships to the West. The silver tablet illustrated (No. 78; fig. 26) shows Jupiter Dolichenus in a shrine, holding thunderbolt and sceptre, with the eagle at his feet. The inscription, written in somewhat defective Latin,' runs: "To Jupiter of Doliche, best and greatest, where iron has its birth. Dedicated by Flavius Fidelis and Q. Julius Posstimus by command of the god on behalf of themselves and their families." Another

1 I(ovi) O(ptimo) M(aximo) Dolicheno, u bi ferrum nascitur, Flavius Fidelis et C. Iulius Posstim us (sic) ex imperio ipsi us pro se et suos (sic).

tablet (very fragmentary) shows the god in trappings of war, holding double-axe and thunderbolt, and standing on a bull (No. 80). He is being crowned by Victory. The presence of mines in North Syria will account for the recurring phrase, "Where iron has its birth." Another Oriental deity, of an influence much deeper than that of Jupiter Dolichenus, was Mithras. This Persian god of light did not thoroughly win his way into the Roman world until the second century after Christ. But, once established, he proved himself of far-reaching power. Mithraism had in its ritual many points of resemblance to that of Christianity, and in the third and fourth centuries after Christ proved a most formidable rival to the spread of Christian doctrines. A memorial of Mithras is seen in the large bronze tablet (No. 81) in Case 104. Its top is decorated with knife and libation-bowl on either side respectively. The inscription, of about the third century after Christ, tells us that it was dedicated to Sextus Pompeius Maximus by priests of Mithras. 'He had held offices in the Mithraic priesthood.

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FIG. 26.-SILVER PLAQUE DEDICATED TO JUPITER
DOLICHENUS (No. 78). Ht. 9 in.

There are several small bronze tablets in Case 104 with dedicatory or religious inscriptions. Among them may be mentioned No. 82, offered to Juno by a freedman named Q. Valerius Minander, and No. 83, an oval bronze seal with a design representing the Emperor Philip (244-9 A.D.; mentioned above, p. 8, in connection with the bronze diploma), his wife Otacilia, and their son Philip. The inscription shows that the seal belonged to the religious society of the Breisean Mystae, who

apparently sealed on behalf of the city of Smyrna, where was a synod of the Mystae of the Breisean Dionysos. No. 84 is the result of a vow made by Hedone, the maid-servant of M. Crassus, to Feronia, a goddess closely connected with freedmen and freedwomen. Her temple at Terracina, on the west coast of Italy, was specially associated with the manumission of slaves. It is likely, therefore, that Hedone's vow had something to do with her manumission. In No. 85 we have a votive offering in the shape of a bronze plate, made to the Lares or gods of the house by Q. Carminius Optatus. The Lares are represented in art as youthful male figures, holding a cornucopia or horn of plenty, and a plate (patera) [see Case 52 of the Bronze Room, and No. 85*]. The offering of a plate was thus peculiarly appropriate, for with the Penates these gods were supposed to ensure the food-supply of the family.

In Case 104 note the series of lead figurines (modelled on both sides). They represent warriors with helmet, cuirass, shield, sword, and greaves. These figurines (No. 86), probably of the seventh to sixth centuries B.C., were found at Amelia (Ameria) in Umbria. It is probable that they are of a votive character, though it has been suggested that they are the prototypes of the modern tin soldier. Very similar figurines have been discovered on the site of the Menelaon, near Sparta, and more recently on the site of the temple of Artemis Orthia by members of the British School at Athens.

Religious rites. The inscription in the left part of Case 98 (No. 87) gives us a glimpse of religious rites at Skambonidae, a deme of Attica, in the early part of the fifth century B.C. The demarch, or local mayor, provided a victim for sacrifice, receiving back the hide of the animal. The oath taken by the priests is given, showing that they were bound to submit to a scrutiny of their official actions.

Religious customs of the Greeks are illustrated by several small objects in Cases 98-100. The small alabaster statuette of a turreted goddess (No. 88) is of special interest from the fact that her mouth and breasts are pierced, evidently with the object of allowing some fluid, such as milk or wine, to flow from them for the edification of her votaries. The lekythos (No. 89) from Kameiros in Rhodes (about 500 B.C.) represents the two gods Castor and Pollux descending from heaven on horseback to take 1 Cf. Livy, xxii. 1, 18: ut libertinae et ipsae, unde Feroniae donum daretur, pecuniam pro facultatibus suis conferrent.

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