[video] Elephant's Tomb in Carmona May Have Been a Temple to the God Mithras
Posted on 05/15/2013 8:10:58 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
The so-called Elephant's Tomb in the Roman necropolis of Carmona (Seville, Spain) was not always used for burials. The original structure of the building and a window through which the sun shines directly in the equinoxes suggest that it was a temple of Mithraism, an unofficial religion in the Roman Empire. The position of Taurus and Scorpio during the equinoxes gives force to the theory...
The origin and function of the construction have been the subject of much debate. Archaeologists from the University of Pablo de Olavide (Seville, Spain) have conducted a detailed analysis of the structure and now suggest that it may originally not have been used for burials but for worshipping the God Mithras. Mithraism was an unofficial religion that was widespread throughout the Roman Empire in the early centuries of our era.
Researchers have identified four stages in which the building was renovated, giving it different uses...
The authors believe that at that moment a statue of the tauroctony, the statue of Mithras slaying the bull (which has been lost), would have been illuminated.
In addition, during the winter and summer solstice, the sun would light up the north and south walls respectively.
Moreover, the position of the heavenly bodies at that time in the 2nd century reinforces the theory that the building was constructed for Mithraic worship, a religion that gave considerable importance to the constellations.
As the sun shines through the window during the spring equinox, Taurus rises to the East and Scorpio hides to the West. The opposite occurred during the autumn equinox.
Taurus and Scorpio were of special significance to the Mithraics.
(Excerpt) Read more at eurekalert.org ...
References: A. Jimenez, I. Carrasco. "The tomb of the Elephant at the Roman Necropolis of carmona. A necessary review through the Building Archaeology and Archaeostromy" Archivo espanol de arqueología. DOI: 10.3989/aespa.085.012.007
[video] Elephant's Tomb in Carmona May Have Been a Temple to the God Mithras
|
|
|
| GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother & Ernest_at_the_Beach | |
|
|
To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. |
|
|
|
|
bttt
Mithra, A protestant form of Zoroastrianism, Had two gods, one good and one bad. It was a man’s religion and it died out because it didn’t permit women to join. Followers branded an “X” on their foreheads and NEVER told a lie or cheated anyone in a business deal. At one time it almost rivaled Christian Religion.
Domo for the Ping. I really appreciate being on the GGG list, SunkenCiv. This is fascinating stuff.
How was it a protestant form of Zoroastrianism? I don’t get the analogy.
Thanks FJ! We’re getting a lot of good stuff to post right now, especially Roman Empire stuff and PreColumbian America.
Mithra(s) was known in the Roman Empire as the soldiers’ god, and other than that there’s been considerable disagreement about how and where it entered the Roman canon. If I had to make a wild guess, it arrived with the Sarmatians, who were integrated into the Roman imperial military auxiliary system as cavalry, and forcibly removed to parts of the Empire (such as Britain) which were remote from the area they’d been living for generations.
Mithraism died out because religions die out, and of course, the western part of the Roman Empire collapsed less than a century after one estimate of the end of Mithraism — it would not be surprising if its actual time of disappearance corresponded to that collapse.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithra
http://www.tertullian.org/rpearse/mithras/display.php?page=main
Lycian Influence To The Indian Cave Temples
The Guide to the Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent | spring of 2000 | Takeo Kamiya
Posted on 07/11/2005 10:37:19 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/1440990/posts
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
