Monumentum
Stars of the Mitreo de Santa Maria Capua Vetere
The vault of the Mithraeum in S. Capua Vetere is decorated with stars that have holes in their centers, which once held colorful glass decorations.
Stars on the Vault of the Capua Vetere Mithraeum.Mihr*
The New Mithraeum
18 Jul 2009
Updated on May 2026
TNMM 175
The vault of the Mithraeum is stuccoed and decorated with stars. Each star is painted inside a circle, with eight rays, alternating in red and blue against a dark-yellow background. A very small hole is often visible in the center of each star.
It is said that, at the time of its discovery, the vault was sprinkled with precious stones, which were later stolen. However, among the loose earth, we found a small circular piece of blue glass paste with a hole in the middle. This suggests that the glass decorations, possibly in various colors, were nailed into the stars.
Once again, the vault symbolizes the heavens, a concept further emphasized by the striking representations of Sol-Mithras on the western wall and Luna on the eastern wall.
