Roman mythology Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans. One of a wide variety of genres of Roman folklore, ''Roman mythology'' may also refer to the modern study of these representat ...

, Verminus was the Roman god who protected cattle from disease. The god may have been inherited from the

Indigetes The Indigetes (Latin: ''indigetes'' or ''indigetae'' or ''Indiketes'') were an ancient Iberian (Pre-Roman) people of the eastern side of the Iberian peninsula (the Roman Hispania). They are believed to have spoken the Iberian language. They occu ...

, whom the Romans conquered in 218 BC during the

Roman conquest of Hispania The Roman conquest of the Iberian Peninsula was a process by which the Roman Republic seized territories in the Iberian Peninsula that were previously under the control of native Celtic, Iberian, Celtiberian and Aquitanian tribes and the Car ...

. An altar dedicated by consul (or duovir) Aulus Postumius Albinus in 151 BC to Verminus was discovered in 1876, and was housed in the museum of the Antiquarium Comunale in Rome. A 2nd century inscription dedicated to the god has been considered to be a reaction to increased worm infections among humans. However, Spanish veterinary scientist M. Cordero del Campillo has concluded that it was due to an epidemic infectious disease affecting both humans and animals. An altar to Verminus was discovered on

Viminal Hill The Viminal Hill ( ; la, Collis Vīminālis ; it, Viminale ) is the smallest of the famous Seven Hills of Rome. A finger-shape cusp pointing toward central Rome between the Quirinal Hill to the northwest and the Esquiline Hill to the southeast ...

in Rome.

References

Agricultural gods Animal gods Health gods Roman gods {{AncientRome-myth-stub