Two tall rectangular stone pillars, one with a snake coiled around a hanging pot sculpted onto it, and the other a tree with a bow and quiver hanging from a branch.
Two grayscale photos of two tall rectangular stone slabs, one with a snake coiled around a hanging pot sculpted onto it, and the other a tree next to floating objects.
Two grayscale images of two lean rectangular stone slabs. Sculpted upon both is a gesturing standing man, beneath whom sits a partial lion-like animal and above whom is a garland.
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Unknown Maker, Roman

Fragments from a Funerary Altar

Maker

Unknown Maker, Roman

Culture

Roman

Title

Fragments from a Funerary Altar

Period

Imperial Roman period

Year

ca. 50 CE

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

white marble

Dimensions

88.3 x 49.4 x 20.6 cm (34 3/4 x 19 7/16 x 8 1/8 inches) Slab A

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Museum Appropriation Fund

Object Number

26.157

Type

Publications

Exhibition History

Being and Believing in the Natural World
Perspectives from the Ancient Mediterranean, Asia, and Indigenous North America
Oct 22, 2022 – Jun 04, 2023

Label copy

These marble reliefs once formed the sides of a funerary altar, the front and back of which are now missing. In the fragment on the left, the tree and the bow and quiver hanging from it all relate to the sun god, Apollo. The evergreen laurel tree symbolizes eternal life, while Apollo himself was associated with resurrection. The fragment at right depicts a snake wrapped around a cista mystica basket linked to the mystery cult of the god Dionysus. The snake, which regularly sheds its skin and grows a new one, is also a symbol of the renewal of life.

--GB

Image use

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Public Domain This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Roman
Fragments from a Funerary Altar, ca. 50 CE
Marble
88.3 x 49.4 x 20.6 cm (34 3/4 x 19 7/16 x 8 1/8 inches) Slab A
Museum Appropriation Fund 26.157

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