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Mithraeum S. Clemente
Unless otherwise indicated, pictures on this page © Marco Prins and Jona Lendering. Photos can be downloaded and used for non-commercial purposes, but you have to acknowledge Livius.
The Mithraeum beneath the church of S. Clemente, Rome. Photo Marco Prins. The Mithraeum beneath the church of S. Clemente is one of the artificial underground caves where those who were initiated in the cult of Mithras celebrated their festivals, such as the birth of the god on 25 December. The Mithraeum underneath the S. Clemente was built inside a late-first century house in the late second century; the hall itself represents the universe and the relief shows how the god killed the devilish bull, the central part of his myth.
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