Bronze Statuette of Cybele in a Cart Drawn by Lions in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, July 2007

Bronze statuette of Cybele on a cart drawn by lions
Roman, 2nd half of the 2nd century BC

Accession # 97.22.24

The cult of the Anatolian mother goddess Cybele was introduced into Rome during the Second Punic War in the late 3rd century BC and remained popular until early Christian times. The goddess is shown with her usual attributes, a patera (libation bowl) in her right hand and a large tympanum (drum) in her left. But instead of flanking her throne as they normally do, here the two oversized lions pull a chariot. This elaborate group comes from a fountain, in which spouts projected from the open mouths of the lions. The original cart, harness, and throne no longer survive; the rear left wheel is a 19th century restoration.

Text from the Metropolitan Museum of Art label.