Pillar of the Boatmen
Encyclopedia
The Pillar of the Boatmen (French Pilier des nautes) is a square-section stone bas-relief with depictions of several deities, both Gaulish and Roman. Dating to the first quarter of the 1st century AD, it originally stood in a temple in the Gallo-Roman civitas of Lutetia
(modern Paris
, France
) and is one of the earliest pieces of representational Gaulish art to carry a written inscription (Hatt, 1952).
, Mars, Fortuna, Castor and Pollux
and Vulcan. Gaulish deities mentioned are Esus
, Tarvos Trigaranos (the Bull with the three Cranes), Smertrios
and Cernunnos
.
The pillar is dated by a dedication to emperor Tiberius
, who became Emperor in 14 AD. It was offered by the guild of sailors of Lutetia, i.e. merchants that travelled along the Seine
. The dedication (CIL 13, 03026; RIG L2-1) is as follows:
Written in Latin with some Gaulish language
features, some deity names are Latin and some Gaulish
. It provides one of the few records of the name Cernunnos
. It is notable that the Gaulish deities are all presented as deity names in their own right, not as epithets of a Roman divinity as would become common in later centuries.
It is formed in four tiers. Although the order from top to bottom is reasonably certain from the relative sizes of the blocks, we do not know the rotational order in which the blocks were arranged; there are 64 possibilities.
, Smertrios
, and Castor and Pollux
. Cernunnos has stag's antlers from which hang two torcs. From the amount of the body in the top half, Cernunnos is assumed to have been depicted in a cross-legged seated position as with other Cernunnos depictions; there is insufficient room for him to be seated on a chair or standing. Smertrios is shown kneeling, brandishing a club and attacking a snake. Castor and Pollus are shown standing beside their horses, each holding a spear (Busson p. 451).
The second tier, which is complete, shows Jupiter, Esus
, Tarvos Trigaranos and Vulcan. Jupiter is shown standing, holding a spear and a thunderbolt. Esus is shown standing beside a willow tree, which he is cutting down with an axe. Tarvos Trigaranus is depicted as a large, heavy-set bull standing in front of a willow tree. Two cranes stand on his back and a third on his head. Vulcan is shown standing, with hammer and tongs. (Busson pp. 449–450)
The third tier, of which we have the top half, bears the main dedicatory inscription on one face. Since this has a border and appears complete, we do not know what was on the bottom half of this face. The other sides show a group of three young men with shields and spears; a group of three older, bearded men with spears and shields, bearing the inscription Iurises; and a group of three figures, at least one of which is female. They are unarmed, dressed in flowing gowns, and have an inscription Senani U[s]eiloni. (Busson p. 448)
The fourth, lowest tier is slightly wider than the upper three. Only the top half remains, and the inscriptions are badly damaged. Each face shows a pair of standing figures. Mars, with spear and sword, is accompanied by a female deity with large round ear-rings and a flowing garment which is held over one arm. Mercury
, with caduceus and is She may be Rosmerta
, a frequent companion to Mercury in Gaulish art. Fortuna is accompanied by another female deity, perhaps Juno
. Two other unidentified female deities are on the fourth face, the one to the left is naked to the waist and holds a large cloak behind her with upraised arms; the other is clothed and has large round ear-rings. (Busson p. 447)
was built on the Île de la Cité
, an island in the middle of the Seine
; a good defensive position and well suited to controlling trade along the river (Carbonnières pp. 13–15, 35-40). It is mentioned by Julius Caesar
in the Gallic Wars. The Gallo-Roman town extended onto the south bank of the river, but the island remained the heart of the city and it was here that the forum and several temples were built. The pillar was erected outside one of these temples.
The Christian
cathedral
of St. Etienne was founded by Childebert
in 528 AD on the site of the Gallo-Roman temple; Notre-Dame de Paris was in turn built over this in 1163 AD.
The pillar was found on 6 March 1710 (not 1711, as is often erroneously stated) during the construction of a crypt under the nave of Notre-Dame de Paris and first published by Baudelot de Dairval in 1712. (Busson pp. 445–446). Not all of the pieces were recovered; for three of the tiers we have only the top half.
After discovery, the stone blocks were taken to the Hôtel de Cluny, a mediaeval ecclesiastical building constructed over the remains of a 2nd century Roman bath house. This became the Musée de Cluny and then, the Musée national du Moyen Age.
In 2001, the blocks were restored, removing the black patina of grime that had accumulated on the surface of the stone over the three centuries since discovery (Saragoza 2003). The restored stones are once again on display in the museum.
Lutetia
Lutetia was a town in pre-Roman and Roman Gaul. The Gallo-Roman city was a forerunner of the re-established Merovingian town that is the ancestor of present-day Paris...
(modern Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) and is one of the earliest pieces of representational Gaulish art to carry a written inscription (Hatt, 1952).
Inscription
The main dedication is to Jupiter, alongside MercuryMercury (mythology)
Mercury was a messenger who wore winged sandals, and a god of trade, the son of Maia Maiestas and Jupiter in Roman mythology. His name is related to the Latin word merx , mercari , and merces...
, Mars, Fortuna, Castor and Pollux
Castor and Pollux
In Greek and Roman mythology, Castor and Pollux or Polydeuces were twin brothers, together known as the Dioscuri . Their mother was Leda, but Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, king of Sparta, and Pollux the divine son of Zeus, who visited Leda in the guise of a swan...
and Vulcan. Gaulish deities mentioned are Esus
Esus
Esus or Hesus was a Gaulish god known from two monumental statues and a line in Lucan's Bellum civile.-Imagery:The two statues on which his name appears are the Pillar of the Boatmen from among the Parisii and a pillar from Trier among the Treveri. In both of these, Esus is portrayed cutting...
, Tarvos Trigaranos (the Bull with the three Cranes), Smertrios
Smertrios
In Gallo-Roman religion, Smertrios or Smertrius was a god of war worshipped in Gaul and Noricum. In Roman times he was equated with Mars. His name contains the same root as that of the goddess Rosmerta and may mean "The Purveyor" or "The Provider", a title rather than a true name...
and Cernunnos
Cernunnos
Cernunnos is the conventional name given in Celtic studies to depictions of the horned god of Celtic polytheism. The name itself is only attested once, on the 1st-century Pillar of the Boatmen, but depictions of a horned or antlered figure, often seated in a "lotus position" and often associated...
.
The pillar is dated by a dedication to emperor Tiberius
Tiberius
Tiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
, who became Emperor in 14 AD. It was offered by the guild of sailors of Lutetia, i.e. merchants that travelled along the Seine
Seine
The Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...
. The dedication (CIL 13, 03026; RIG L2-1) is as follows:
- Tib(erio) Caesare /
- Aug(usto) Iovi Optum[o] /
- Maxsumo /
- nautae Parisiaci /
- publice posierunt(!) //
- Eurises // Senani U[s]eiloni //
- Iovis // Tarvos Trigaranus //
- Volcanus // Esus //
- [C]ernunnos // Castor // [3] //
- Smeri[3]os //
- Fort[una?] // ]TVS[
Written in Latin with some Gaulish language
Gaulish language
The Gaulish language is an extinct Celtic language that was spoken by the Gauls, a people who inhabited the region known as Gaul from the Iron Age through the Roman period...
features, some deity names are Latin and some Gaulish
Gaulish language
The Gaulish language is an extinct Celtic language that was spoken by the Gauls, a people who inhabited the region known as Gaul from the Iron Age through the Roman period...
. It provides one of the few records of the name Cernunnos
Cernunnos
Cernunnos is the conventional name given in Celtic studies to depictions of the horned god of Celtic polytheism. The name itself is only attested once, on the 1st-century Pillar of the Boatmen, but depictions of a horned or antlered figure, often seated in a "lotus position" and often associated...
. It is notable that the Gaulish deities are all presented as deity names in their own right, not as epithets of a Roman divinity as would become common in later centuries.
Description
The pillar is made of a type of limestone called "pierre de Saint-Leu-d'Esserent", from Saint-Leu, Oise, France. The original pillar would have been 5.24m high, 0.91m wide at the base and 0.74m wide at the top. (Saragoza 2003).It is formed in four tiers. Although the order from top to bottom is reasonably certain from the relative sizes of the blocks, we do not know the rotational order in which the blocks were arranged; there are 64 possibilities.
Deities
The top tier, of which only the top half remains, depicts CernunnosCernunnos
Cernunnos is the conventional name given in Celtic studies to depictions of the horned god of Celtic polytheism. The name itself is only attested once, on the 1st-century Pillar of the Boatmen, but depictions of a horned or antlered figure, often seated in a "lotus position" and often associated...
, Smertrios
Smertrios
In Gallo-Roman religion, Smertrios or Smertrius was a god of war worshipped in Gaul and Noricum. In Roman times he was equated with Mars. His name contains the same root as that of the goddess Rosmerta and may mean "The Purveyor" or "The Provider", a title rather than a true name...
, and Castor and Pollux
Castor and Pollux
In Greek and Roman mythology, Castor and Pollux or Polydeuces were twin brothers, together known as the Dioscuri . Their mother was Leda, but Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, king of Sparta, and Pollux the divine son of Zeus, who visited Leda in the guise of a swan...
. Cernunnos has stag's antlers from which hang two torcs. From the amount of the body in the top half, Cernunnos is assumed to have been depicted in a cross-legged seated position as with other Cernunnos depictions; there is insufficient room for him to be seated on a chair or standing. Smertrios is shown kneeling, brandishing a club and attacking a snake. Castor and Pollus are shown standing beside their horses, each holding a spear (Busson p. 451).
The second tier, which is complete, shows Jupiter, Esus
Esus
Esus or Hesus was a Gaulish god known from two monumental statues and a line in Lucan's Bellum civile.-Imagery:The two statues on which his name appears are the Pillar of the Boatmen from among the Parisii and a pillar from Trier among the Treveri. In both of these, Esus is portrayed cutting...
, Tarvos Trigaranos and Vulcan. Jupiter is shown standing, holding a spear and a thunderbolt. Esus is shown standing beside a willow tree, which he is cutting down with an axe. Tarvos Trigaranus is depicted as a large, heavy-set bull standing in front of a willow tree. Two cranes stand on his back and a third on his head. Vulcan is shown standing, with hammer and tongs. (Busson pp. 449–450)
Block of dedication
The fourth, lowest tier is slightly wider than the upper three. Only the top half remains, and the inscriptions are badly damaged. Each face shows a pair of standing figures. Mars, with spear and sword, is accompanied by a female deity with large round ear-rings and a flowing garment which is held over one arm. Mercury
Mercury (mythology)
Mercury was a messenger who wore winged sandals, and a god of trade, the son of Maia Maiestas and Jupiter in Roman mythology. His name is related to the Latin word merx , mercari , and merces...
, with caduceus and is She may be Rosmerta
Rosmerta
In Gallo-Roman religion, Rosmerta was a goddess of fertility and abundance, her attributes being those of plenty such as the cornucopia. Rosmerta is attested by statues, and by inscriptions...
, a frequent companion to Mercury in Gaulish art. Fortuna is accompanied by another female deity, perhaps Juno
Juno (mythology)
Juno is an ancient Roman goddess, the protector and special counselor of the state. She is a daughter of Saturn and sister of the chief god Jupiter and the mother of Mars and Vulcan. Juno also looked after the women of Rome. Her Greek equivalent is Hera...
. Two other unidentified female deities are on the fourth face, the one to the left is naked to the waist and holds a large cloak behind her with upraised arms; the other is clothed and has large round ear-rings. (Busson p. 447)
Original location
The Gaulish town of LutetiaLutetia
Lutetia was a town in pre-Roman and Roman Gaul. The Gallo-Roman city was a forerunner of the re-established Merovingian town that is the ancestor of present-day Paris...
was built on the Île de la Cité
Île de la Cité
The Île de la Cité is one of two remaining natural islands in the Seine within the city of Paris . It is the centre of Paris and the location where the medieval city was refounded....
, an island in the middle of the Seine
Seine
The Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...
; a good defensive position and well suited to controlling trade along the river (Carbonnières pp. 13–15, 35-40). It is mentioned by Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
in the Gallic Wars. The Gallo-Roman town extended onto the south bank of the river, but the island remained the heart of the city and it was here that the forum and several temples were built. The pillar was erected outside one of these temples.
History of the Pillar
Some time in the 3rd century, the stone blocks that formed the pillar were broken into two and used to reinforce the foundations of the walls along the riverbank. Over time, the island grew slightly so that the 3rd-century wharfs are now a dozen meters from the banks of the modern river (Kruta 1883).The Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
of St. Etienne was founded by Childebert
Childebert
Childebert was the name of several Frankish kings:*Childebert I, king of Paris *Childebert II, king of Austrasia *Childebert the Adopted, king of Austrasia, known as Childebert III in France...
in 528 AD on the site of the Gallo-Roman temple; Notre-Dame de Paris was in turn built over this in 1163 AD.
The pillar was found on 6 March 1710 (not 1711, as is often erroneously stated) during the construction of a crypt under the nave of Notre-Dame de Paris and first published by Baudelot de Dairval in 1712. (Busson pp. 445–446). Not all of the pieces were recovered; for three of the tiers we have only the top half.
After discovery, the stone blocks were taken to the Hôtel de Cluny, a mediaeval ecclesiastical building constructed over the remains of a 2nd century Roman bath house. This became the Musée de Cluny and then, the Musée national du Moyen Age.
In 2001, the blocks were restored, removing the black patina of grime that had accumulated on the surface of the stone over the three centuries since discovery (Saragoza 2003). The restored stones are once again on display in the museum.