Roman365 Directory

Mithraism was one of the most popular of the pagan cults in the Roman Empire. It was based on worship of the sun god, Mithras, who like any good pagan god, represented a wide variety of things. He was a god of light, war, justice, faith, and contract. Mithras is usually represented as a human and is associated with the Greek sun god Helios and the Roman god, Sol Invictus.

The ancient Roman religion known as the Mithraic mysteries has captivated the imaginations of scholars for generations. There are two reasons for this fascination. First, like the other ancient "mystery religions," such as the Eleusinian mysteries and the mysteries of Isis, the Mithraic cult maintained strict secrecy about its teachings and practices, revealing them only to initiates.

Explore the ruins of the 3rd century temple to the Roman god Mithras at Carrawburgh on Hadrians Wall, and the reconstruction on display in the Museum of Antiquities at the University of Newcastle, through Virtual Reality. If any object interests as you look around just click on the relevant hotspots to learn more about that object.