The contribution explores the possible connection between the gradual transformation of the Imperial cult and the decline of Mithras’ worship in the Late Antique Italian region of Tuscia et Umbria, which, thanks to its archaeological record, represents a privileged setting to analyze this phenomenon. From the town of Hispellum comes a well known epigraphic text issued during the third decade of the 4th century dealing with the local establishment of the Imperial cult. The rescript constitutes a key piece of evidence reflecting the phase in which the Imperial power was beginning to experiment locally with forms of distancing between the Imperial cult and polytheistic religions. Among such cults, devotion toward Mithras appears especially well rooted within the region. This is due both to its private nature, which allowed rapid growth driven by the spontaneous participation of diverse social groups, and its employment as a vehicle of civic legitimization and ritualization of the relationship between the emperor and his subjects. Therefore, this paper aims to show how the gradual process of downplaying polytheistic religiosities by Imperial authorities during the 4th and 5th centuries may have contributed to a growing loss of interest in Mithras worship and its eventual vanishing throughout the region.
Il rescritto di Hispellum nel contesto del panorama religioso mitraico. Rapporti tra il culto imperiale e la venerazione di Mitra nella Tuscia et Umbria tardoantica
Nicola Luciani
2025
Abstract
The contribution explores the possible connection between the gradual transformation of the Imperial cult and the decline of Mithras’ worship in the Late Antique Italian region of Tuscia et Umbria, which, thanks to its archaeological record, represents a privileged setting to analyze this phenomenon. From the town of Hispellum comes a well known epigraphic text issued during the third decade of the 4th century dealing with the local establishment of the Imperial cult. The rescript constitutes a key piece of evidence reflecting the phase in which the Imperial power was beginning to experiment locally with forms of distancing between the Imperial cult and polytheistic religions. Among such cults, devotion toward Mithras appears especially well rooted within the region. This is due both to its private nature, which allowed rapid growth driven by the spontaneous participation of diverse social groups, and its employment as a vehicle of civic legitimization and ritualization of the relationship between the emperor and his subjects. Therefore, this paper aims to show how the gradual process of downplaying polytheistic religiosities by Imperial authorities during the 4th and 5th centuries may have contributed to a growing loss of interest in Mithras worship and its eventual vanishing throughout the region.
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