What a Relief!
Objects from Bradford on Avon Museum: Votive relief fragment. By Sophie Hawke, Trustee, Bradford on Avon Museum
L
ast month we focused on Long-case clocks in Bradford on Avon Museum’s collection. This
month we learn about something much smaller: the discovery and importance of a chance find in Bradford on Avon.
As for the geology of the stone, Roger Clarke, Honorary Curator, says, ‘the relief fragment is carved from one of the Middle Jurassic Great Oolite limestones which are popularly grouped together as ‘Bath Stone’. It is a shelly oolitic limestone with a number of fossil bryozoans. It is possible that the limestone derived from Bradford on Avon itself, or localities between Bradford on Avon, Bath and Corsham.’
Fig.1 Votive relief fragment. ©Roger Clark, Bradford on Avon Museum
This fragment of limestone carving (Fig.1) came to light in 2003 during renovations to Bryant’s hardware shop, (now the Thai Barn restaurant) at 9-10 St Margaret’s Street. It was being used, along with a damaged 14th century stone lion, as rubble fill in a boundary wall. Once discovered, the stone carving was removed and set into a garden wall. Having heard about it at the time, I recognised it as possibly being Romano-British, so I contacted Dr Martin Henig, Institute of Archaeology in Oxford, a leading authority on Roman religion and art. He identified it as part of a Romano- British votive relief and, following discussions with the owners, they kindly donated to Bradford on Avon Museum.
What was a votive relief? Roman religion was contractual, so you asked the gods for something and promised them a reward if your wish was granted. If the god answered your prayer, you would set up an altar or a relief, or sacrifice an animal, thus fulfilling your vow. A votive relief was essentially payback for the gods granting a request.
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The fragment measures 400mmx300mm and depicts a seated figure on the right, with a figure to the left and remains of a further figure to the far left. Dr Henig believes that the fragment is part of a larger votive relief depicting a mother goddess with three genii cucullati (guardian spirits), dating to 2nd or 3rd century AD. Unfortunately, it seems that at some point in its history, the figures in the relief were chiselled down in an attempt to reuse the block of stone, which was subsequently discarded and used as rubble fill, with the relief placed facing into a wall. It is not certain when the left side of the relief was damaged.
Following a talk I gave, leading archaeological illustrator, Nick Griffiths, was keen to draw both the
votive relief (and the stone lion) for Bradford on Avon Museum (Fig. 2). The votive relief and the stone lion are both currently on display in Bradford on Avon Museum.
So, just where did the votive relief come from? This is a mystery and we cannot be certain of its origins. Although a large Roman villa site is recorded to the north of Bradford on Avon above Budbury hillfort (no longer visible), very little evidence of Roman activity has been found in the town centre, to the south of the river. However, this votive relief from the centre of Bradford on Avon is a significant addition to the growing number of Cotswolds examples found in recent years. Its presence suggests that there may have been a shrine nearby or the relief may have come from an, as yet, undiscovered temple at the nearby Roman villa site.
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Fig. 2 Votive relief fragment. Illustration by Nick Griffiths
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