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Huaca del Sol, Moche
The remains of the Huaca del Sol pyramid at Moche, Peru. The huge ceremonial mound had four tiers and was constructed using over 140 million adobe bricks. Reaching a height of 50 metres, the site was used for religious and state ceremonies.
Definition
Helios
Helios (also Helius) was the god of the Sun in Greek mythology. Helios rode a golden chariot which brought the Sun across the skies each day from the east (Ethiopia) to the west (Hesperides). Helios was famously the subject of the Colossus...
Definition
Moche Civilization
The Moche civilization (also known as the Mochica) flourished along the northern coast and valleys of ancient Peru, in particular, in the Chicama and Trujillo Valleys, between 1 CE and 800 CE. The Moche state spread to eventually cover an...
Definition
Mithraism
The Mithraic Mysteries, also known as Mithraism, were a mystery cult in the Roman world where followers worshipped the Indo-Iranian deity Mithras (Akkadian for "contract") as the god of friendship, contract and order. The cult first...
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Disc Dedicated to the Sun-God Sol
Silver leaf disc dedicated to the sun-god Sol. Sol is crowned with rays. Two horses appear behind his shoulders. From Pessinus (Bala-Hissar, Asia Minor), in modern-day Turkey. Roman period, 3rd century CE. (The British Museum, London).
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Hippomenes and Atalanta by Guido Reni
A 1615-18 oil painting, Hippomenes and Atalanta, by Guido Reni (1575-1642). Shown as part of the exhibition GUIDO RENI. The Divine at The Städel Museum in Frankfurt, Germany (2022-23). (Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid)
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Cult Relief of the Mithraic Mysteries
Mithras looks away from the dying bull, up to the moon. Also, Mithras has a few little helpers that accompany him in taking the bull's fertility: a dog and a snake drink from the bull's blood, and a scorpion stings the bulls scrotum. A raven...
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Mosaic with Busts of the Planetary Deities, Italica (Spain)
Mosaic in the House of the Planetarium in Italica (an archaeological site located in modern-day Santiponce, 9 kilometres (5.5 miles) north of Seville in Spain) with busts of the planetary deities who gave their names to the days of the week...
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Roman Gilt Silver Fibula
Roman gilt silver fibula in the form of a three-story tripartite gate of rusticated masonry, with a central double-arched entrance flanked by two towers and a draped bust of Sol at the top story, c. 3rd century to early 4th century CE...
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Childhood in Ancient Rome
Freeborn Roman children, ingenuiae, born of Roman citizen parents lived a life that was dictated by the level of society into which they were born; a day in the life of a child from the lower level of society and one from the more affluent...