A mysterious 12-sided magic object from Ancient Rome was discovered: it is unknown why it was created (photo)

Scientists have discovered a 1,600-year-old fragment of a mysterious bronze artifact called the Roman Dodecahedron, used in the Roman Empire in northern Belgium. In northern Europe over the past two hundred years, scientists have discovered more than 100 of these mysterious ancient artifacts, which are small 12-sided geometric figures made of bronze. There are large holes and spikes at the corners of each face. But still no one knows what it was created for and how it was used. A new study suggests these may be linked to the magical rituals of the inhabitants of the Roman Empire, according to Live Science.

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According to Guido Krimers of the Gallo-Roman Museum in Tongeren, Belgium, there are several hypotheses regarding the unusual object’s purpose.

• some believe it is some kind of calendar;
• others that it is a measuring instrument for determining distance;
• There are those who claim that it is a symbol of power;
• some scientists also believe that this item was used for a game like dice.

However, most archaeologists believe these objects were probably used in magical rituals.

The found fragment of an ancient artifact was quickly determined to be part of a Roman dodecahedron measuring about 5 cm wide. According to Krimers, the Gallo-Roman Museum displayed a complete dodecahedron made of bronze that was discovered in 1939 at Tongeren, once a Roman settlement. Now scientists will exhibit a new artifact.

According to scientists, the Roman dodecahedron was first discovered in England in the 18th century, and since then more than 100 such mysterious artifacts have been found in northern Europe. Scientists believe that they were all created between the 1st and 5th centuries AD. A new fragment of a mysterious ancient Roman object, 4th-5th century BC.

Until now, scientists do not know what the dodecahedron was used for, since no historical record of these objects has been preserved.

Creamers believe they were most likely secretly used for magical purposes such as predicting the future, and this was outlawed by the Christian religion, which spread throughout the Roman Empire in the late period of its existence.

“I still assume that the Roman dodecahedron was used to perform witchcraft, divination, that is, magical rituals. And such acts were severely punished at that time, so these rituals were performed in secret. Perhaps that is why no records have yet been found of the use of this element, ” says Creamers.

There is nothing on the dodecahedrons as to exactly how or what they were used for. Although it is known that they all have different weights and sizes – from 4 to 11 cm wide. According to Creamers, these artifacts were often found in ancient tombs, but only in the north of Europe, that is, in the northern part of the ancient Roman Empire, where Gauls and Celts mostly lived.

“I believe the new fragment of the Roman dodecahedron will help us answer many of the questions that concern us about these mysterious bronze artifacts. The location of many of them is poorly documented, but we know exactly where they found a new object. Studies show that at this location the ancient home of a wealthy Roman was once the home. “It showed that a Roman villa was found,” he says.

The scientists also found that the dodecahedron, of which the found piece is part, was most likely intentionally broken. And perhaps this happened during the last magical rite.

Focus He had already written that scientists had discovered a 2,500-year-old love letter.

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