a) Inscriptions

The goddess name Arduinna is known from an inscription discovered on the road from Düren to Montjoye, near Gey (Germany): Deae Ardbinnae T(itus) Iulius Aequalis [v]slm, ‘To the goddess Arduinna, T. Julius Equalis paid his vow willingly and deservedly’.¹¹¹⁸ Spickermann explains thatthe letter b accounts for the letter u. Ardbinna must be a presumably regional variant of Arduinna.¹¹¹⁹ Arduinna is generally said to be honoured with the Celtic god Camulus and the three Roman deities Jupiter, Mercury and Hercules in a dedication from Rome engraved under a relief* representing the five deities: Arduinne, Camulo, Iovi, Mercurio, Herculi, M(arcus) Quartinius M(arci) f(ilius) cives Sabinus Remus, miles coh(ortis) VII pr(aetoriae) Antoniniane p(iae) v(indicis) v(otum) l(ibens) s(olvit) (fig. 49).¹¹²⁰ In this now lost figuration,Camulus (‘Champion’ or ‘Servant’) is unsurprisingly depicted as the Roman god of war, for he is generally associated with Mars in the inscriptions.¹¹²¹ As for Arduinna, she is portrayed in the features of Diana with a bow and a quiver. Despite its relatively puzzling character, the authenticity of this document had never been questioned or contested until Claude Sterckx pointed out that it was actually a fanciful reconstitution of a relief*, which originally depicted Saturnus and Mars instead of Arduinne and Camulus.¹¹²² Therefore, this document does not mention Arduinna and her representation as a Roman Diana is erroneous.

Fig. 49: Inaccurate drawing of the lost relief* from Rome, originally depicting Saturnus, Mars, Jupiter, Mercury and Hercules. Krüger, 1917, p. 11, fig. 8.

A third fragment of inscription, engraved on a silver dish from La Rocque d’Anthéron (Bouches-du-Rhône), could allude to Arduinna: …]tialniarduinn[…, but the reading remains uncertain and hypothetical.¹¹²³Only one dedication thus mentions the goddess Arduinna, that is the inscription from Düren.