Varia Severa

Varia Severa is known from an inscribed altar traditionally attributed to Mithras and reportedly discovered at Bulciago, near Mediolanum, in northern Italy. The inscription records that Varia Severa, daughter of Quintus, fulfilled a vow, and the opening letters have conventionally been restored as D(eo) I(nvicto) M(ithrae). If this interpretation were correct, she would represent one of the very few women associated with a Mithraic dedication in the surviving epigraphic record.

The inscription, however, is highly problematic. The restoration of Invicto Mithrae is entirely conjectural, and several scholars have proposed alternative readings, including D(is) M(anibus) and D(is) Magnis). Vermaseren himself noted the uncertainty of the text, while Griffith emphasised that the inscription cannot be regarded as secure evidence for female participation in the cult of Mithras. Chalupa went further, arguing that the monument should be excluded from the corpus of relevant Mithraic evidence altogether.

Additional doubts arise from the existence of a nearby inscription from Erba mentioning the same Varia Severa in connection with Mercury. It has even been suggested that the two records may derive from a single original inscription transmitted in different forms. Under these circumstances, Varia Severa remains a historical person whose existence is certain, but her association with Mithraism must be regarded as doubtful.