Mysterious Facts and Discoveries of Ancient Rome
The Hand of God
Hadrian’s Wall was a defensive reinforcement in the Roman province of Britannia, which is the area of the island of Great Britain that was governed by the Roman Empire. Along the wall is the ancient Roman fort Vindolanda, now an excavation site. Archaelogists found what they call the ‘hand of god’ there, which is a 4-inch metal hand that is missing an attachment that should have been inserted into the palm. Researchers believe Romans use the hand as votive while praying to the god Jupiter Dolichenus. They also found a temple devoted to the god Jupiter Dolichenus, hence their theory of what the hand is for. The relic can be dated back between 208 and 212 A.D., which is a turbulent time for the Roman empire, since it’s the period of the ‘Severan’ emperors, whose rule was riddled with rebellion, civil war, genocide, and other conflicts.
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