The depiction shows part of an initiation ritual into the Bacchic mysteries, in that a silen will empty a liknon filled with fruit and the phallos over the initiate's head.
This pictorial motif was conceived as a counterpart to the 'Hermenschmückung' and is not limited to Roman clay reliefs. It was also popular, especially in the Iulian-Claudian period, in other object genres such as stucco reliefs, wall painting and in small art. (AVS)
Former August Kestner Collection, Rome
en
