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Mosaic Glass Apis Bull Caesarea Maritima
n.igma:
Explanation of headdress .... https://www.ancient.eu/Apis/
Apis is depicted throughout Egypt's history as a striding bull, usually with a solar disc and uraeus (the sacred serpent which symbolized the king's power) between its horns.
This article also explains the attributes of the Apis bull, which is what we see on the flank of the bull as represented on the glass.
The bull was selected, after a careful search, based upon its appearance: it had to be black with a white triangular marking on its forehead, another white marking on its back in the shape of a hawk's or vulture's wings, a white crescent on its side, a separation of the hairs at the end of its tail, (known as the "double hairs") and a lump under its tongue in the shape of a scarab. If a bull were found with all of these characteristics, it was instantly recognized as Apis, of course, but even a few or one would suffice. A white marking in the shape of a triangle on the forehead and the scarab-shaped lump under the tongue were often enough for the bull to be chosen.
I think the "mushroom" is a representation of a form of tripod, in the the bowl of which is a pile of grain, an offering (i.e. feed) for the god (i.e. the Apis bull).
What an amazing find. It suggests that the cult of the Apis bull may have extended some distance beyond the borders of 1st century Egypyt, or that a practitioner of the cult visited Caesarea.
Russ:
Hi all,
I believe the mushroom is a tripod containing an offering to the god, namely food of some kind. There is a remarkable chance that your slab was cut from the same rod as was the Virginia example. After the numerous cames/rods of narrow gas were arranged, bound, fired, fused and stretched, a rod of glass containing the image was produced, then sliced much like our cold cuts are sliced in a deli. Sometimes, stresses build up in the glass, because parts of it were not properly annealed. In your example, the break/chip on the lower half is not random, but caused by centuries in sea water working with the stresses in the glass. Absolutely fascinating, thanks for sharing!
An excellent book, is: Stern, E.M. & Schlick-Nolte, B. Early Glass of the Ancient World, 1600B.C. - 50 A.D., Ernesto Wolf Collection, 1994.
Russ
v-drome:
Thank you Russ, N.igma, and JBF. I do not know the find site of the museum piece. I do know that Serapis was extremely popular at Caesarea and other cities in Palestine. Roman coins from Alexandria were commonly found there as well.
Best regards, V-drome
SC:
Sarapis rose to prominence during the reign of Ptolemy I. He represented a Hellenistic anthropomorphization of the ancient Egyptian Apis bull into a Human god. It is not certain whether he was "created" under Ptolemy I from a merger of Osiris and Apis, or whether he was already being worshipped at Memphis as Sar-Apis. The evidence is ambiguous. (Hugh Bowden, Mystery Cults of the Ancient World, p.160-161.)
The Apis bull itself likely started as a symbol of the living image (or ba) of the Egyptian god Ptah of Memphis. However, by the 4th century BC, the Apis bull was believed to become Osiris after its death, under the name Osor-Hapi, or, to the Greeks, Oserapis. Under the Ptolemies, Sarapis was made to look like Zeus or Ascelpius, but wearing a chiton or himation (i.e. less nude than Zeus) and wearing a kalathos (grain measure) as a crown. Sarapis took the place of Osiris. Votive offerings in temples include a mixture of images of Sarapis and of the Apis bull showing that they were effectively seen as the same.
(The Cambridge History of Religions in the Ancient World, Volume II, p.174, 177-178, 182)
In any event worship of Sarapis (thus incorporating Apis), and of Isis, was widespread across the entire Empire, not just Egypt. Witness the Temple of Isis and Sarapis on the Campus Martius voted by the second triumvirate in 43 BC, the fantastic Isaeum Savariense museum in Szombathely, Hungary (Roman Savaria), and the inscription evidence of a fanvm isidis at London.
SC
v-drome:
Very interesting. Thanks, again Shawn
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