Relief of a round platter with food of Ladenburg

TNMM 405

This unusual object was found in 1971 in the southern part of the vicus of Lopodunum (Ladenburg, Baden-Württemberg), inside a storeroom that had been abandoned and filled in in the 2nd century C.E. The setting was that of an artisans' quarter, in which several pottery ovens have come to light. Circular in form, this platter, made of local sandstone, features a carefully smoothed edge, while its decoration is unfinished. The central design is comprised of a dish with a flat bottom and two semi-circular ansae, the one on the right being hardly carved. Inside the dish, a fish seen in profile is positioned between two series of three eggs (or else three loaves of bread), beside a lightly sketched bird. Around the receptacle runs a continuous frieze, of which only the left part is complete, featuring a bird with ivy leaves and fruits. These peculiarities make it clear that this object was abandoned while it was being worked on, for reasons that escape us.

Although the function of this sandstone platter cannot be deduced from the context of its discovery, its iconography might evoke the food consumed during Mithraic banquets. In fact, a famous relief found in the south part of the Roman vicus shows Mithras banqueting with Sol. With that said, such a platter could have had a funerary function. Analogous stones sculpted in relief (called mensae funerariae) mark the location of tombs at the necropolis of Thamugadi (modern Timgad) in the Roman province of Africa Proconsularis. Their decorations evoke funerary meals, and teature one or more fish arranged on a dish equipped with handles, accompanied by eggs, poultry, bread and cakes.