On this day (18/9/2024) in 1954, the marble head of a statue of the Roman god, Mithras (recognisable by his distinctive Phrygian cap), was found in Walbrook, London. A significant discovery that elicited much media attention, it was unearthed during the final day of an archeological excavation conducted by W. F. Grimes, then director of the Museum of London, and Audrey Williams.
The excavation unearthed an entire temple, dating from the mid-third century AD. This would have stood on the banks of the river Walbrook, a now subterranean waterway that was a key source of freshwater for Roman Londinium. The river also marked the boundary of the first Roman settlement in the area. Alongside the marble head of Mithras, a white marble relief was discovered. This depicted the mythological scene, the “tauroctony”, of Mithras in a cave slaying a sacred bull that he had hunted and overpowered. The excavation also yielded white marble depictions of Minerva, Mercury, and Serapis, as well as clay likenesses of Venus, all of which were displayed at the Museum of London. The temple was subsequently dismantled and moved 100 meters to Temple Court, where, in 1962, it opened to the public. The temple has since been relocated to its original site (more or less), forming part of Bloomberg’s European headquarters in the city. It remains open to the public.
Relief of the the tauroctony found at Walbrook.
The cult of Mithras, or Mithraism, remains rather enigmatic. It was inspired by a deity worshipped in the eastern Empire and emerged in Rome during the first century AD. It spread across the western Empire throughout the next three centuries. For example, a Mithraic temple was built—probably around AD 200—by soldiers garrisoned at the Carrawburgh fort on Hadrian’s Wall.
The “tauroctony” was at the heart of Mithraism and so was often depicted in temples, such as that uncovered in Walbrook. These were typically built underground—alluding to the cave in which Mithras slew the bull—and therefore dark and windowless, adding to the eerie, esoteric vibes that mention of the cult of Mithras continues to evoke. There were seven grades of initiation and initiates referred to themselves as syndexioi: those "united by the handshake". Mithraism was popular amongst artisans, soldiers (as the temple near Hadrian’s Wall helps to evidence), and administrators.
The London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE.