MITHRAIC TEMPLE

Discovered by chance during the construction of a house in 1931, this small Roman mithraeum (Hram Boga Mitre) was dug into the rock between the 2nd and 4th centuries. It is the oldest monument in the city. Located 2.80 m below ground level, it is small (about 7 × 7 m). Its walls have collapsed, but it has a well-preserved bas-relief of the Indo-Iranian deity Mithra. Recognizable by his Phrygian cap and Oriental garb, the god appears killing a bull, surrounded by two figures carrying banners. This is a classic representation of Mithra. Most often built underground, the mithræa (temples dedicated to Mithra) have been transformed into church crypts. This one seems to have been created by Roman customs employees who were followers of Mithraism. It would then have fallen into oblivion, thus escaping destruction. The practice of this monotheistic cult was brought from the eastern borders of the Roman Empire to Europe by legionaries in the first century AD and flourished before being banned in 391 after Christianity was named the official religion. Several mithræa have been discovered in the region, in Croatia and in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The one in Konjic, slightly larger (7 × 9 m), is later and less well preserved since it was built in the open air. The Franciscan Museum houses bas-reliefs from other temples of the Roman period, but these are from the vicinity of Šipovo.