Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index

The thyrsus was traditionally a fennel staff topped with a pinecone and decorated with greenery and signified followers of the cult of Dionysos, the pagan god of wine, fertility, and sexuality. The woman carrying the bells resembles other late antique depictions of maenads, the frenzied female followers of Dionysos. Taken together, the satyr, maenad, and thyrsus indicate that the woman in the ivory is likely Ariadne, Dionysos’ eventual bride. Kurt Weitzmann noted that the motif of putti crowning figures with wreaths was commonly associated with marriage, lending further weight to this identification. Weitzmann and other scholars have speculated that the relief may have once had a pendant carving representing Dionysos himself. All in all, the Ariadne ivory resembles other luxury, classicizing ivory panels from the sixth century in style, perhaps most notably the Barberini Ivory. Dionysiac motifs proved especially popular in the late antique secular sphere from Rome to Sassanid Persia, perhaps for their association with abundance and pleasure, and similar scenes appear often on household tapestries, mosaics, and fine silver.