A rare gold Roman pendant in the form of a phallus and a hand making the ‘mano fica’ gesture, the thumb thrust between the middle and index fingers, has been discovered during excavation at 8 - 10 Moorgate in London.
The phallus and ‘mano fica’ were important symbols in the Roman world associated with both male and female sexuality and fertility, as well as being thought to have magical qualities, such as the power to ward off the evil eye. They were used as good luck charms and similar objects have been found in a range of materials and sizes. Some hung from military horse harness while others clearly had a more personal significance, such as a silver phallus pendant on a chain found with the body of a girl who died at Pompeii during the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79.
