Archaeology

The Museu Episcopal de Vic has a large collection of small full fusion (solid) bronze sculptures that were part of the domestic furnishings of the Roman 'domus' and 'villae'. Some of these figurines of deities had a cultural purpose, whereas others were for decorative purposes only. This statuette represents Jupiter: he has a bearded face and short hair, and wears a crown with a central rosette. He seems to be holding a sheaf of lightning bolts in his right hand. The iconography eschews the habitual and shows the right leg bent over an eagle at his feet with its wings outspread. The highest deity in the Roman pantheon, he is the god of international relations and guarantees the observation of treaties.