Thread by @DocCrom

A quick #EpigraphyTuesday thread to get my day going, with this dedicatory statue group of Dionysus from the Mithraeum in London: ca. 4th Century AD. #Roman

Image: Museum of London (18496). Link - collections.museumoflondon.org.uk/online/object/…

The group shows Dionysus accompanied by typical members of his retinue: Silenus upon his ass; a Satyr; a Maenad holding a 'cista'; and a panther.

But as this is and epigraphy thread, what really interests us is the brief inscription on the base:

"hominibus bagis bitam"

'(Give) life to wandering men'

The inscription employs the letter 'B' for 'V', as was relatively common in later Latin inscriptions, thus the phrase should be read as 'hominibus vagis vitam'. Its crude carving suggests that it may have been a later addition to the statue group.

For the RIB entry for this piece (RIB 1), see:

romaninscriptionsofbritain.org/inscriptions/1

#EpigraphyTuesday #Roman