Object number
A2554
Description
Small solid cast bronze (copper alloy) figurine; depicts a standing male, presumably a deity; probably a 'lar' (pl 'lares'), or household god; traditional Roman households owned at least one protective Lar-figure, housed in a shrine or wall-niche; they were placed at table during family meals and banquets, and also functioned as divine witnesses at important family occasions, such as marriages, births and adoptions; the shrine provided a religious hub for social and family life; this is a fairly crude figurine, with some minor anatomical irregularities; this figure is naked except for draped cloak over arms & groin; wears a Phrygian cap? or curled hair?; the hands are empty & formerly held something; this could have been a cornucopia (Horn of Plenty) representing fruitfulness, or a libation plate, for offering sacrifices of wine. Ref: Arch.Cant.18 (1889), p.189. Found in March 1888 near Quarry House, Frindsbury during extension of the chalk quarry, and recorded by A A Arnold & George Payne.
Production period
Roman, 3rd century AD
Object name
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