Art Tauroctony

1 art

1.1 introduction
1.2 mithras bull
1.3 artistic model
1.4 ancillary elements

art
introduction

cimrm 181: tauroctony fresco in mithraeum of santa maria capua vetere, 2nd century.

whether painting or carved monument, depiction of tauroctony scene belonged standard furniture of every mithraeum. @ least 1 depiction mounted on wall @ far end of space ritual activity took place, in niche dressed cavelike. richly furnished mithraea, such 1 in stockstadt main, had multiple cult reliefs.

the scenes can divided 2 groups. simple depictions, include main bull-killing scene, , compound depictions, in tauroctony central , largest element, framed panels portray other scenes.

the oldest known representative of tauroctony scene cimrm 593/594 rome, dedication of alcimus, slave steward/bailiff (servus vilicus) of t. claudius livianus, identified t. iulius aquilinus castricius saturninus claudius livianus, praetorian prefect under trajan. other 5 earliest monuments of mithraic mysteries, dates around 100 ce.

mithras bull

cimrm 1083: tauroctony relief heidenfeld mithraeum (mithraeum i, heddernheim, germany), in wiesbaden. extensive description available @ image s wikipedia commons page.

although there numerous minor variations, basic features of central tauroctony scene highly uniform: mithras half-straddles bull has been forced ground. bull invariably appears in profile, facing right. in original (un-reconstructed) depictions, mithras invariably has head turned away bull, , in many looking on right shoulder sol (statuary shows mithras looking @ bull result of renaissance-era restorations of monuments missing head). bull held down mithras left leg, bent @ angle , knee of presses down on bull s spine. bull s rump , right hind leg restrained mithras right leg, extended.

with left hand, mithras pulls head of bull nostrils or muzzle (never horns, – if @ represented – short). in right hand, mithras holds knife or short sword plunged neck/shoulder of bull. alternatively (cimrm 2196), knife sticking bull s neck, , mithras has arm raised if in triumph. mithras dressed in knee-length long-sleeved tunic (tunica manicata), closed boots , breeches (anaxyrides, bracae). mithras cape, if wears one, spread open, if flying. occasionally, mithras nude (cimrm 2196, 2327; 201; 1275). on head, mithras wears phrygian cap, 1 worn attis. tail of bull appears end in ear of wheat. blood wound depicted ears of wheat, or cluster of grapes.

several cult images have bull adorned roman dorsuale, decorated embroidery. dorsal band or blanket placed on of animal adoption then-contemporary images of public sacrifice, , identifies bull sacrificial beast.

from traces of pigment found on reliefs seems there no particular coloring tradition followed. in relief jajce (cimrm 1902), bull black, while mithras tunic blue , cloak red. in relief marino , wall fresco capua vetere (cimrm 181), bull white. @ marino, mithras tunic red , cloak blue. in stucco group in frankfurt rome (cimrm 430), animal reddish brown. in relief barbarini mithraeum (cimrm 390), bull light brown , mithras tunic , trousers green.

artistic model

model mithraic bull-killing scene type of winged nike (victory) killing bull, became fashionable image once again in reign of trajan. similarity great cumont mistook cimrm 25 near baris related mysteries. subsequently corrected vermaseren , others being of nike. in 1899, cumont had identified tauroctony imitation of motif of classical greek group of nike sacrificing bull , supposed both tauroctony scenes attributable 2nd century bce pergamene artistic traditions. notion has been characterized 1 of cumont s least happy hypotheses .

ancillary elements

detail of cimrm 593: dog , serpent set @ bull s wound.



detail of cimrm 593: scorpion heading bull s testicles.

usually canine (commonly identified dog), serpent , scorpion appear in tauroctony scenes; dog , serpent typically set reaching wound, while scorpion typically set @ genitals of dying bull. many reliefs include bird, commonly identified raven, somewhere in scene. not infrequently, particularly in reliefs rhine , danube frontiers, tauroctony scenes include chalice , lion.

seldom absent reliefs, , included in free-standing tauroctony statuary, representations of cautes , cautopates, torchbearering twins appear miniature versions of mithras, respectively holding raised torch , lowered torch. usually, cautes stands right of scene while cautopates on left. in fifty tauroctony scenes, positions reversed, , in rare cases (such earliest cimrm 593), both on 1 side of scene. torchbearers commonly appear crossed legs. on number of reliefs, greenery or tree placed in vicinity, on both sides of bull, , @ other times, such @ nida (germany) wreath around relief. siscia in pannonia superior (sisak, croatia) similar wreath made of ears of wheat (cimrm 1475).

the signs of twelve zodiacal constellations (cancer, leo, virgo, libra, scorpius, sagittarius, capricorn, aquarius, pisces, aries, taurus, gemini) , allusions 7 planets (which in greco-roman thought include sun , moon) common in tauroctony reliefs , frescoes. tauroctony reliefs (but not statuary) include busts of sol , luna, i.e. respectively god of sun , goddess of moon, appear in respectively left , right top corners of scene. more ambitious cult images include sun s horse-driven quadriga mounting upwards on left, while luna s oxen-driven biga descends on right. in these, sol s chariot preceded naked youth phosphorus, runs ahead raised torch. luna s chariot preceded hesperus, lowered torch. 2 youths reminiscent of cautes , cautopates.

luna, sol , other 5 planetary gods (saturn, mars, mercury, jupiter, venus) represented stars in mithras outspread cloak, or scattered in background. 7 planetary gods commonly represented depiction of 7 altars (e.g. cimrm 40, 1275, 1818, 2245) or less commonly in anthropomorphic form, busts or full-length. several of more detailed reliefs seem have planetary gods placed in order of week-day dedications (from right left: monday/day 2:luna, tuesday:mars, wednesday:mercury, thursday:jupiter, friday:venus, saturday/day 7:saturn, sunday/day 1:sol), no standard sequence discernible.

as first identified karl bernhard stark in 1879 unexplored until dismantling of cumontian transfer scenario in 1970s, other elements of tauroctony scene except mithras himself have obvious astral correlations too. constellations of taurus (bull) , scorpius (scorpion) on opposite points of zodiac, , between them lies narrow band of sky in constellations of canine (canis major/minor or lupus), snake (hydra, not serpens or draco), twins (gemini), raven (corvus), cup (crater), lion (leo), , star of wheat ear (spica, alpha virginis) appeared in summers of late first century. simultaneously, porphyry s description of mysteries states, moon known bull , taurus exaltation (de antro 18).

beginning cumont, held astral symbolism (and other greco-roman elements in mysteries) merely late, superficial , adventitious accretion, mithraic scholars have treated correspondences between elements of tauroctony , constellations coincidental or trivial. chance these correlations accidental unintended coincidence improbable in extreme . chance correlations intentional, added incoherently , unsystematically, statistically negligible . @ same time, elements of tauroctony scene belong story designer of scene wished tell, , bull present because mithras kills one, not because bull taurus and/or moon.

occasionally, busts of 2 or 4 wind gods found in corners of cult reliefs. figures of other protective gods (juno-hera, oceanus-, hercules, vulcan, etc.) appear.

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