Marble statue of Dionysus seated on a panther

Marble statue of Dionysus seated on a panther thought to be produced in the joint reign of Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, 161-69 CE at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This sculpture includes a dedicatory inscription which reads: Philetus, a freedman of the Augusti, willingly fulfilled his dedication to the Invincible God Serapis and Queen Isis (of this) small altar with (its) base and two statuettes for his own safety and that of Aurelia Quintiliana. The Metropolitan Museum of Art points out that the reference to two emperors, as indicated by the abbreviation AVGG, suggests a date in the joint reign of Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, AD 161–69. For those of you who enjoy deciphering ancient inscriptions, here is the original Latin: INVICTO DEO SERAPI ET ISIDI REGINAE PHILETVS AVGG LIB PRO INCOLV- MITATE SVA ET AVRELIAE QVI- NTILIANAE A- RVLAM CVM BASI ET SIGILLA DVO VOTUM LIBES SOLVIT CIL VI.1, 574



Image: Marble statue of Dionysus seated on a panther thought to be produced in the joint reign of Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, 161-69 CE courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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