Excavations near the ancient port city of Ostia Antica have brought to light a small, exceptionally well-preserved altar dedicated to Robigo, the deity associated with agricultural blight. Inscribed with instructions for the Robigalia festival, the artifact confirms that the rite took place annually and involved specific prayers to ward off wheat mildew.
The discovery is significant as it provides the first physical evidence of the processional markers used during the ceremony. The altar’s location on a known agricultural boundary suggests that the festival served as a spiritual "cordon sanitaire," physically and symbolically protecting the empire's grain supply from environmental disaster.