Images: Ancient Carving of Roman God

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Carved Stone Head

carved head

(Image credit: Durham University)

Carved Stone Head, side view

Carved Stone Head, side view

(Image credit: Durham University)

Archaeologists involved in its discovery are still not sure who the head is meant to represent.

Antenociticus Stone Head

carved head of deity

(Image credit: Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne, Great North Museum)

This statue of the Roman god Antenociticus – associated with military prayer – was discovered in 1862 in a nearby region of County Durham. Archaeologists think the newly discovered carved head may represent the same deity, as the two share many of the same features.

The dig site

The archaeological dig site

(Image credit: Durham University)

The pit that the head was found in sits within what archaeologists think was once a bath house.

Buildings in the Binchester Roman Fort

ruins

(Image credit: Darrell J. Rohl | Flickr)

Ruins of other buildings around the site are preserved for public visitors.

Bath house

bath house remains

(Image credit: Darrell J. Rohl | Flickr)

Inside a bath house preserved at the Binchester Roman Fort.

Remains of a drain

(Image credit: Darrell J. Rohl | Flickr)

A drain or a water channel found outside of a bath house at the fort.

Dere Street

Remains of an old street

(Image credit: Darrell J. Rohl | Flickr)

A portion of Dere Street, a major road during the Roman Empire, runs through the fort.

County Durham today

rolling hills

(Image credit: Kevin Eaves | Shutterstock)

The rolling hills of County Durham have been heavily farmed and mined for coal in more recent history.

Laura Poppick
Laura Poppick
Live Science Contributor
Laura Poppick is a contributing writer for Live Science, with a focus on earth and environmental news. Laura has a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a Bachelor of Science degree in geology from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. Laura has a good eye for finding fossils in unlikely places, will pull over to examine sedimentary layers in highway roadcuts, and has gone swimming in the Arctic Ocean.