Mithras was an Iranian god whose cult became very popular throughout the Roman Empire, spread largely by soldiers. Shrines dedicated to Mithras have been found at sites as far apart as Hadrian’s Wall in northern Britain and Dura Europos on the River Euphrates in Syria. This plaque may well have decorated the wall of such a Mithraeum (place of worship). Busts of Sol (the Sun) and Luna (the Moon) watch over the ritual scene of Mithras slaying the bull, aided by a dog, snake, and scorpion.

• References

  Herrmann, Ariel and Dr. Seán Hemingway. 1997. "Recent Acquisitions, A Selection: 1996-1997." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 55(2): p. 17.
  
  Picón, Carlos A. 2007. Art of the Classical World in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Greece, Cyprus, Etruria, Rome New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 459, pp. 393, 495.
  
  

• Timeline of Art History (2000–present)
  Timelines

  Italian Peninsula, 1–500A.D.
• MetPublications
  "Recent Acquisitions, A Selection: 1996–1997": The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 55. no. 2 (Fall, 1997) (1997)

  Roman Art: A Resource for Educators (2007)