ABSTRACT

In 1932 a deer antler carved into the form of an approximately life-sized, three-dimensional, erect human phallus was discovered alongside Romano-British activity at Colsterworth Quarry, Lincolnshire and donated to Grantham Museum. Never previously subject to a discussion in print, this article considers the phallus through the lenses of apotropaic magic and the magico-medicinal and socio-religious significance of deer and deer products in Roman Britain. The original context of discovery is not well recorded, though likely relates to an area of industrial activity with an associated settlement nearby. A variety of potential functional and ritual contexts for the antler phallus are considered: as a fragment of religious statuary, an apotropaic device on a building or vehicle, a votive offering, and as part of a tool or vessel. These discussions explore the highly contextualised applications of embodied and disembodied phallic imagery in Roman Britain, the liminal space between concepts of religion and magic, and the significance of materiality and embodied interaction when considering the socio-religious significance of phallic imagery.

摘要

1932 年，在林肯郡科尔斯特沃思采石场的罗马-英国活动中发现了雕刻成近似真人大小的 3D 直立人类阴茎形式的鹿角，并将其捐赠给格兰瑟姆博物馆。这篇文章以前从未在印刷品中进行过讨论，而是通过逆光魔法的镜头以及罗马不列颠鹿和鹿制品的魔法医学和社会宗教意义来考虑阳具。发现的原始背景没有得到很好的记录，尽管可能与附近有相关定居点的工业活动区域有关。鹿角阳具的各种潜在功能和仪式环境被认为是：作为宗教雕像的碎片、建筑物或车辆上的逆光装置、供品以及作为工具或容器的一部分。