In ancient Greek religion, kriophoros (Greek: κριοφόρος) or criophorus, the "ram-bearer," is a figure of Hermes that commemorates the solemn sacrifice of a ram; thus, one of the god's epithets is Hermes Kriophoros.
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👉 Kriophoros in the context of Zoster (costume)
A zoster (Greek: ζωστήρ, zōstēr) was a form of girdle or belt worn by men and perhaps later by women in ancient Greece, from the Archaic period (c. 750 – c. 500 BC) to the Hellenistic period (323–30 BC).
The word occurs in Homer, where it appears to refer to a warrior's belt of leather, possibly covered in bronze plates. Later references in the late Archaic and early Classical periods show it used as a belt or cloth girdle with men's clothes, especially the shorter chiton.
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Kriophoros in the context of Tomb of the Julii
The popularly named "Tomb of the Julii" (Mausoleum "M") survives in the Vatican Necropolis beneath St. Peter's Basilica. The serendipitous discovery near the crypt has a vaulted ceiling bearing a mosaic depicting a solar deity with an aureole riding in his chariot, within a framing of rinceaux of vine leaves.
The surrounding Christian iconography, such as other mosaics in this tomb depicting Jonah and the whale, the good shepherd carrying a lamb (the kriophoros motif), and fishermen have led to an interpretation of the deity as Christ, known in this form as "Christus-Sol" or "Christ-Apollo". Due to these symbols, the tomb is interpreted as an early Christian vault. Allen Brent has described it as a "synthesis between Christ and Apollo", in the context of Emperor Aurelian's promotion of Sol Invictus as the chief god of the Roman Empire. According to Brent, Sol Invictus - "with whom Apollo also could be identified" - represented the "shared deity of all individual gods", and the Christian creators of the Tomb of the Julii wished to "express the metaphysical order in the cosmos in terms of a Christian syncretism".