Roman Marble Statue Unearthed in Bulgaria

News October 17, 2024

Plinth inscription bearing the name "G(aius) Marius Hermogenes"
Varna Regional History Museum
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VARNA, BULGARIA—The Sofia Globe reports that a larger-than-life Roman statue dated to the second or third century A.D. was uncovered during construction work near the coast of the Black Sea, outside the walls of the ancient city of Odessos. The white marble figure depicts a middle-aged man with a short beard. His right hand is missing, and there is some damage to the face. A Greek engraving on the statue’s plinth names “G[aius] Marius Hermogenes,” who is shown wearing a toga and holding a scroll, which are both symbols of Roman authority. The statue has been transferred to the Archaeological Museum in Varna, where it will be cleaned and restored. To read about a legionary’s marble gravestone uncovered at the Roman settlement of Almus in northwestern Bulgaria, go to “A Dutiful Roman Soldier.”

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