Archaeologists have uncovered a rare inscription that marks the transition from the Roman mystery cult of Mithras to early Christianity.
The 1,700‑year‑old engraving, written in Aramaic, was found in the underground sanctuary of a Mithras temple at Zerzevan Castle, a fort north of the Syrian border in Turkey.
The inscription sits beside a cross image at the temple entrance and is the first known Aramaic text documenting the closure of a Mithras shrine.
Its wording references both Mithras and Jesus Christ, suggesting the temple was sealed by Christian worshippers as the empire shifted its religious focus.
Earlier coin finds had hinted at abandonment in the third or fourth century, but the inscription provides direct evidence of a symbolic Christian closure during the period when emperors adopted the new faith.
Similar archaeological work this summer uncovered a fifth‑century Christian church in the ancient city of Olympus and a Roman hospital later converted into a Christian sanctuary at Kaunos.
These findings collectively illustrate the rapid replacement of Mithraism by Christianity across the Roman world and underscore the significance of the Zerzevan inscription.
