Museum Explorer
Gods and spirits in Roman Britain
Head of Mercury
From: Uley, Gloucestershire
Date: 2nd century AD
The Roman god Mercury acted as a messenger to the other gods. This head was originally part of a larger statue of Mercury. Pieces of the rest of the statue have also been discovered, including parts of Mercury's two animals, a ram and a cockerel.
The head was found on a site in Gloucestershire that was used for many centuries as a place of worship. In this one place traces of an Iron Age shrine, a large Roman temple to Mercury, and signs of later Christian worship have been found.
