Intaglio with Tauroctony from Munich

TNMM 550

This heliotrope gem (a green jasper dotted with red spots) was discovered in a medieval tomb that came to light near the entrance to Saint Peter’s Abbey on the Madron, a Benedictine monastery on the mountain also called Petersberg, which looks down upon the valley of the Inn, near Flintsbach, in the Bavarian Prealps. This burial, dating to the first half of the 13th century, received the remains of a man of mature age, buried face down in the attitude of a penitent. Other than two denarii from Regensburg issued in the name of Duke Otto II (1231-1253), it contained, below the level of the pelvis, a capsule formed by two coins initially attached together: a bracteate of Emperor Frederick II (1215-1250) and a denarius of the patriarch Berthold V of Aquileia (1218-1251). It was also within this atypical container that the ancient gem was carefully preserved.

Dating to the 2nd or 3rd century, this high-quality intaglio represents Mithras slaughtering the bull inside an arch, evoking the entrance to a cave, atop which a raven is perched. A scorpion with a disproportionately long tail grips the bull’s testicles, while a dog stands near the bleeding wound. Below, a serpent crawls towards a crater. Cautes, on the left, with a raised torch, and Cautopates, on the right, with a lowered torch, each stand, their legs crossed, on one side or the other of the cave. Above this scene, two large busts face forward: Luna with a crescent on the left and Sol with a radiant crown on the right. Seven stars with eight rays appear in the field.

The way in which this rich individual came into possession of this engraved stone 1,000 years later can only be a matter for speculation: a local discovery? a commercial network? And so on. As the container reveals, from all signs the object had great value and must have served as an amulet. Contemporary written sources — notably Medieval lapidaries — inform us that heliotropes were believed to contain a drop of Christ’s blood and thus had multiple powers, notably protecting their bearer against poison and the Devil. The engraved image itself also had significance.

During this era it must not have been perceived as that of Mithras Tauroctonos. It is more likely that this stone, engraved with the sun, moon and seven planetary stars, would have been considered to have astrological value. Some have attempted to establish a connection with the total solar eclipse that occurred in southern Germany in 1133. Nothing is less certain than this.

Comments

aagabriel

beautiful engaving and gemstone