New Trends in Mithraic Studies. Experiencing the Dura-Europos Mithraeum

The Mithraeum at Dura-Europos, discovered in 1934, offers great opportunities for an interpretation in line with the recent paradigm shift in Mithraic studies. This new approach emphasizes the local interpretation of this empire-wide cult and sets out to reconstruct the lived experience of its participants. Based on the archaeological remains found at Dura, this paper first attempts to reconstruct the basic facts about the community that used this Mithraeum. The paper subsequently turns to the reconstruction of the emotional, lived experience within this group. Both pictorial and inscriptional evidence show that this must have been an exclusive, close-knit community that lived by its own rules. The narrative associated with Mithras was enacted in rituals performed inside the temple, thus merging the divine and mortal worlds, and having a profound emotional impact on the participants.