Archaeologists have uncovered a rare inscription that records the transition from the Roman mystery cult of Mithras to early Christianity.
The engraving was discovered at an underground Mithras temple within the ruins of Zerzevan Castle, a fortification located roughly 40 miles north of the Syrian border.
Dating to approximately 1,700 years ago, the inscription is written in Aramaic, the lingua franca of the ancient Near East and the language spoken by Jesus Christ.
Positioned at the temple’s entrance alongside a depiction of a cross, the text had resisted interpretation since its discovery in 2017.
Analysis of the lettering and language by Professor Mehmet Sait Toprak places the inscription in the third or fourth century A.D., making it the first known Aramaic record of a Mithras sanctuary’s closure.
The text explicitly mentions both Mithras and Jesus Christ, indicating a symbolic shift from the mystery cult to the Christian faith, and includes references to the Holy Cross.
Excavation director Aytaç Coşkun noted that earlier coin finds suggested the temple was abandoned in the third or fourth century, and the newly deciphered inscription provides direct evidence of its deliberate sealing by Christians.
The discovery aligns with broader patterns observed in the region, where fourth‑century Roman emperors embraced Christianity, leading to the decline of competing religions such as Mithraism.
Similar transitions have been documented elsewhere, including a fifth‑century Christian church uncovered at the ancient city of Olympus and a Roman hospital at Kaunos that was later converted into a Christian sanctuary.
