Gilded spoons from the Thetford treasure
Roman Britain, 4th century AD
Thetford, Norfolk
These gilded spoons formed part of a remarkable hoard of
late-Roman gold jewellery and silver tableware found near Thetford,
Norfolk, in 1979.
The two spoons, one a large cignus, the other a
long-handled cochlear are clearly from a matching set.
Both have Bacchic decoration, the first a horn-blowing triton
holding a steering-oar and accompanied by a dolphin, the latter a
tigress and a tree.
The inscriptions are to the 'god Faunus Narus', referring to the
obscure Italian god Faunus. The Celtic element narus, or
narius (perhaps meaning 'powerful' or 'mighty') emphasizes
that this was a local cult. There are Bacchic elements in the
decoration of both spoons and jewellery, and Faunus may at this
date have formed part of the wider Bacchic cult. It appears that
the treasure was owned and used by committed pagans and may have
been hidden as a result of anti-pagan legislation in the final
decade of the fourth century AD.
C.M. Johns and T. Potter, The Thetford Treasure: Roman j (London, The British Museum Press, 1983)