2012Archeological Treasure - Cult of the god Mithra in Konjic - Sheetlets

Mithraism was a religious system in whose centre was the cult of Indo-Iranian god Mithra (latin Mithras), whose worship was popular in the territory of the Roman Empire from the 1st to 3rd century. Mithra’s cult was spread by the Roman legions from the eastern provinces of the Empire. There isn’t much written evidence about the religious system; so much of the reconstruction is based on archeological monuments. Mithraism has combined certain elements of Greco-Roman religion and the beliefs about afterlife, virtue, sacrifice, which partly coincided with Christian principles. In Roman Empire, Mithra was named as invincible Sun (Sol Invictus). However, the cult has been limited mainly to the military elite and closed circles, so it hasn’t spread as Christianity.
Shrine of the god Mithra was called mithraeum. Many of these shrines were in natural or artificially constructed caves. One of the most complete monument of the Mithra’s cult, 16 of theme in B&H, was found in 1894 in Konjic, near the train station, on the right bank of the creek Trstenica. The monument with the relief scenes on both sides was found at the shrines built on the plateau (9x5 meters). On the front side, the scene in which the supreme god Mithra kills the bull is shown, and on the arch above the inscription: DEO SOLI INV[ICT]O METER[I] = to the invincible god of the sun Mithra. As it was about a provincial carver, instead of MITHRAE, carver wrote METERI. The back side shows the ritual feast (communion) of Mithra’s followers. In the middle there is a table and two persons sitting around it, first in the religious hierarchy – Pater and Heliodrom. In front of the table there is small tripod with four breads. Other participants in the feast represent certain religious orders, some of which have masks on their face (Corax, Nymphus, Miles, Perses). When the Christianity was declared as official religion of the Empire, Mithraism soon vanished. Its last traces dating from the 5th century. (Radoslav Dodig)