archaicwonder:Roman Bronze Statuette of Sol Invictus, 2nd-3rd Century ADFound circa 1830 on the outs
archaicwonder:Roman Bronze Statuette of Sol Invictus, 2nd-3rd Century ADFound circa 1830 on the outskirts of Montdidier, Somme, France. In ancient times this was the Roman province of Gallia Belgica. Sol Invictus (“Unconquered Sun”) was the official sun god of the later Roman Empire and a patron of soldiers. In 274 AD the Roman emperor Aurelian made it an official cult alongside the traditional Roman cults. Scholars disagree about whether the new deity was a refoundation of the ancient Latin cult of Sol, a revival of the cult of Elagabalus or completely new. The god was favored by emperors after Aurelian and appeared on their coins until Constantine I. The last inscription referring to Sol Invictus dates to AD 387, and there were enough devotees in the 5th century that Augustine found it necessary to preach against them. -- source link