Nikola Benin. With the Favour of the Gods

 Nikola Benin

The right-hand panel shows a religious ceremony that would have taken place before the Wall was built, and before the army marched into Scotland. Three animals – a pig, a ram and a bull – were sacrificed to the war-god Mars, to purify and prepare the army for the task of conquest and construction. The animals are shown at the front of the scene, accompanied by two attendants, one playing pan-pipes. Behind stands a group of soldiers. The one in front is probably the commander of the legion, and he pours an offering from a circular pan onto an altar. One of the soldiers behind him holds a flag to remind the viewer again that LEG II AVG built this part of the wall. The “AVG” in the title commemorates the legion’s service for Augustus, the first emperor of Rome.