Teacher notes: Roman Altar
This object is a roman altar found in Bisley near Stroud. The Romans
worshipped many gods and did so both in temples and in their homes. They
would worship and pray at the altar of the god whose help they needed.
This altar was discovered along with 6 others, 5 of which were dedicated to
Mars, the Roman god of war and protector of agriculture. It is difficult to date
such an object as the Romans were found in Britian from 55 AD to 410 BC,
however these altars were found with a coin of Faustina (141 – 175) which
could give an indicator as to when they were made.
The altars were discovered in 1866 when a road was being constructed at
Bisley Common. Some of the altars had been deliberately reburied in a
Bronze Age barrow (burial chamber). It is not unusual to find such objects that
have been intentionally hidden, sometimes they were incorporated into the
fabric of early churches which were often built on previously sacred sites.
This altar, unlike the others is not dedicated to Mars. It shows a ram-horned
snake twisted around the body and on the top an engraved wheel shape.
There has been debate as to what this may depict. Some think that it could
represent the genius of a place. This is the idea that a place has a spirit and
for humans to live harmoniously with that place they must access this spirit, or
genius, when they make decision to alter the land. This altar could have been
a way of doing so.
Alternatively, we think that this altar may have been dedicated to two Celtic
gods. The ram-horned snake could be an engraving of Cerunnos the Celtic
god of prosperity and fertility. The wheel shape may represent the Celtic sun
god Taranis, thought to bring good weather. This would mean that although
this altar is not portraying Mars as the others are, it might well have been
worshipped for the same purposes.
If the altar is dedicated to Celtic Gods it makes it particularly interesting
because although it is Roman, it is not portraying Roman gods. It would be an
example of the native British population absorbing Roman culture and how
they romanised their own Celtic gods. This in itself would be an unusual find,
but added to the fact that the altar appears to be dedicated to not one but two
gods would make it even rarer.
The altar is relatively small, around 15cm in height, 8.5cm in width and 6cm in
thickness. This may suggest that instead of being found in a temple it could
have been portable and used in a household shrine. If you look carefully at
the top at the focus you can see a scorch mark where offerings, often sweet
smelling wood or pine cones, were burnt during a religious ceremony.
This object is a very valuable part of the museum’s collection. It is extremely
rare and gives an insight into the people that lived here during the Roman
times. It would suggest that they adopted certain traits of the Roman religion,
whilst retaining and merging native beliefs.