Zeugma Mars Statue from Turkey, c.250 CE: this statue of Mars, the Roman god of war, was found in the ruins of a city that was ransacked by the Sassanids
This bronze statue stands nearly 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall. The eyes are highlighted by gold and silver inlay, which gives the figure's face a strikingly intense expression.
According to this article:
A bronze statue of Mars, the Roman god of war, was found in the ancient city of Zeugma in the course of an excavation campaign in 1999-2000. The statue represents one of the most interesting and spectacular finds from this city on the banks of the Euphrates river in southern Anatolia.
The god of war is depicted with a spear in one hand and a scourge in the other, as this article describes:
The statue is of great interest on one side for its rarity, as few Roman bronzes of such size are so well preserved, and on the other for its unusual iconography, depicting the standing god as a young athlete. The right arm is raised, its hand closed around a spear that has not been found, while the left is bent at the elbow, with the hand wielding an object that appears to be a scourge with multiple and symmetrical endings.
Beneath the helmet, thick curls frame the face of the young man whose frown is marked by strongly furrowed eyebrows and a very intense gaze, highlighted by silver and gold inlays around the pupils.
It's believed that this statue was hidden in a closet when the city of Zeugma was ransacked by the Sassanids in 253-256 CE:
The small size of the space in which the artifacts were discovered and its place in the general plan of the villa suggests a closet where the precious materials were hidden to escape the pillaging of the city, carried out in 253-256 AD by the Sassanids.
Unfortunately, most of the archaeological site was flooded when the Birecik Dam was constructed back in 2000, and the ruins at Zeugma are now submerged beneath 60 meters (200 feet) of water. This statue was salvaged (along with many other artifacts) during the emergency excavations that occurred as the site was being flooded; it's currently displayed at the Archaeological Museum of Gaziantep, in southern Turkey.
Centro di Conservazione Archeologica: Zeugma Mars Conservation Project
Journal of Roman Archaeology: The Bronze Mars of Zeugma
Packard Humanities Institute: The Rescue Excavations at Zeugma in 2000
Turkish Archaeological News: Zeugma
UNESCO: The Archaeological Site of Zeugma
Turkish Museums: Time Capsule of Ancient Roman Art: Zeugma
Archaeological Institute of America: Troubled Waters
Archaeology Magazine: Zeugma After the Flood
turnnoffyourmind
theartofmadeline
stormborns
gracieabrams
andulkaphoto
gummygunk
tangentwithtanner
