Cautes and Cautopates are torch-bearers depicted attending the god

Mithras Mithraism, also known as the Mithraic mysteries or the Cult of Mithras, was a Roman Empire, Roman mystery religion focused on the god Mithras. Although inspired by Iranian peoples, Iranian worship of the Zoroastrian divinity (''yazata'') Mit ...

in the icons of the ancient Roman cult of

Mithraism Mithraism, also known as the Mithraic mysteries or the Cult of Mithras, was a Roman Empire, Roman mystery religion focused on the god Mithras. Although inspired by Iranian peoples, Iranian worship of the Zoroastrian divinity (''yazata'') Mit ...

, known as

Tauroctony ''Tauroctony'' is a neologism, modern name given to the central cult image, cult reliefs of the Mithraic Mysteries in the Roman Empire. The imagery depicts Mithras killing a bull, hence the name ''tauroctony'' after the Greek word (, "bull killi ...

. Cautes holds his torch raised up, and Cautopates holds his torch pointed downward.

Interpretation

In Mithraic images,

either represents the sun, or is a close friend of the sun god

Helios In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; ; Homeric Greek: ) is the god who personification, personifies the Sun. His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyperion ("the one above") an ...

Sol Invictus Sol Invictus (, "Invincible Sun" or "Unconquered Sun") was the official Solar deity, sun god of the late Roman Empire and a later version of the god Sol (Roman mythology), Sol. The emperor Aurelian revived his cult in 274 AD and promoted Sol Inv ...

(

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

: ''the invincible sun'') with whom

dines. So attendants Cautes and Cautopates are supposed to represent the stations of

sunrise Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning, at the start of the Sun path. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon. Terminology Although the S ...

and

sunset Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its Earth's rotation, rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it ...

respectively, or perhaps the spring and autumn

equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun appears directly above the equator, rather than to its north or south. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise directly east and set directly west. This occurs twice each year, arou ...

es, or equivalently the ascending (spring) and descending (autumnal) nodes of the Sun's apparent path on the

celestial sphere In astronomy and navigation, the celestial sphere is an abstract sphere that has an arbitrarily large radius and is concentric to Earth. All objects in the sky can be conceived as being projected upon the inner surface of the celestial sphere, ...

. If eclipses of the sun and moon formed part of Mithraic symbolism, they could also represent the ascending and descending nodes where the Moon crosses the

ecliptic The ecliptic or ecliptic plane is the orbital plane of Earth's orbit, Earth around the Sun. It was a central concept in a number of ancient sciences, providing the framework for key measurements in astronomy, astrology and calendar-making. Fr ...

Depictions

Both are depicted as smaller than Mithras to emphasize his significance, and both wear

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

style garments, notably a

Phrygian cap The Phrygian cap ( ), also known as Thracian cap and liberty cap, is a soft Pointed hat, conical Hat, cap with the apex bent over, associated in Classical antiquity, antiquity with several peoples in Eastern Europe, Anatolia, and Asia. The Phry ...

, to emphasize the supposed oriental origins of the cult. Cautes holds a burning torch pointed up, whereas Cautopates holds a burning torch pointed down. Cautopates is usually depicted on the left, but not always. They are often shown standing with their legs crossed, but not always. The two torch-bearers are often interpreted as symbols of light, one for the rising, the other for the setting sun. Cautopates could also represent death, while Cautes might represent new life. An alternative interpretation advanced by David Ulansey is that Cautes represents the spring

and Cautopates the autumn

. Thus, represented on the left and right of the Tauroctony, they become a realistic cadre of the celestial equator and the constellations included between the two

equinoxes A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun appears directly above the equator, rather than to its north or south. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise directly east and set directly west. This occurs twice each year, arou ...

during the

Age of Taurus An astrological age is a time period which, according to astrology, parallels major changes in the development of human society, culture, history, and politics. There are twelve astrological ages corresponding to the twelve zodiacal signs in wes ...

. M.J. Vermasaren shows Mithras, the unconquerable sun, and his two torch-bearers, Cautes, sunrise, and Cautopates, sunset, equally sized in a 3-branch pine tree, visible at

Dieburg Dieburg () is a small town in southern Hesse, Germany. It was formerly the seat of the district ("Kreis") of Dieburg, but is now part of the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg. History Early mentions of Dieburg date back to the early 13th century, with ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Vermasaren suggests they form a Mithraic "Trinity".

References

External links

{{Commons cats, Cautes, Cautopates
UCL, Mithras
Mithraism

Interpretation

Depictions

See also

References

External links