The offering of such sacrifices as were supposed to be acceptable to their deities, formed an essential part of the religion of the Greeks and Romans. Very numerous are the altars which have been discovered on the line of the Wall. Many of them are small, some not larger than the palm of the hand, rough in the workmanship, and without any inscription; others are of large size, [Illustration: alt=Altar, Deo Vetri] and of ornate character. The usual form of them is shewn in the annexed cut. The inscription is on the face of the altar; the base and upper portion project a little beyond the sides. A small cavity on the top called the _focus_, or hearth, received the offering. The sides of the altar were frequently adorned with carvings representing the victims, the implements used in sacrifice, and insignia of the god. On the altar[137] before us, we have represented the _præfericulum_, or pitcher, which contained the wine for the offering; the _patera_, a round, shallow dish, generally with a handle, which was used in throwing a small portion of the wine upon the altar; the _securis_, or axe, with which the animal was slain; and the _culter_, or knife, used in flaying or dividing it. In the Chesterholm altar, figured _p._ 240, the sacrificial ox is represented; and on the sides of the altar to Jupiter, which is shewn on page 290, the thunder-bolt of the god, and the wheel of Nemesis— the emblem of swift vengeance—are given. The small size of the _focus_ proves that the offerings presented to the deities occupied a very small bulk. When an animal was slain, a portion of the entrails was often all that fell to the lot of the god. Idibus in magni castus Jovis æde sacerdos Semimaris flammis viscera libat ovis.[138] _Ovid’s Fasti_, i. 587. [Sidenote: NATURE OF THE OFFERINGS.] Frequently the offering consisted of a little barley-meal, some fruit, some frankincense, or chips of fragrant wood, with wine or milk. Occasions of sacrifice were often times of merry-making. The slain victim and the dedicated wine formed the ready materials of a feast. Ovid sarcastically represents an old woman performing the rites due to the goddess of Silence; upon her offering (three grains of incense) she allows a few drops of wine to fall, and assisted by her companions, though needing little help, she drinks up the remainder, departing from her devotions tipsy, and anything but taciturn. Ecce anus ... annosa, Et digitis tria thura tribus sub limine ponit Vina quoque instillat. Vini, quodcumque relictum est, Aut ipsa, aut comites, plus tamen ipsa, bibit. ... ebriaque exit anus. _Fasti_, ii. 571. [Sidenote: ALTAR TO JUPITER.]