A ''lanx'' (Latin for dish) was a large ancient Roman serving platter.Lysons, Daniel & Lysons, Samuel
"Antiquities: British and Roman"
Magna Britannia vol 5, 1817, pp. CCIII-CCXVIII. Accessed November 26, 2007. Particularly ornamented ones were used to make offerings or sacrifices. Indeed, the silver Corbridge Lanx, the second discovered in Britain, has depicted on it a lanx itself, set beside various gods and goddesses:

Minerva Minerva (; ; ) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. She is also a goddess of warfare, though with a focus on strategic warfare, rather than the violence of gods such as Mars. Be ...

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997), ...

Juno Juno commonly refers to: *Juno (mythology), the Roman goddess of marriage and queen of the gods * ''Juno'' (film), the 2007 film Juno may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters *Juno, a character in the book ''Juno of ...

, Vesta and

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

. Positioned atop an altar, "of a globular form". Fruit as well as sheep parts and "other small victims" were likely used. However, the exact meaning in this representation has not been determined. The inscription on the now lost

Risley Park Lanx The Risley Park Lanx is a large Roman silver dish (or lanx) that was discovered in 1729 in Risley Park, Derbyshire, and was later lost from view. In Roman times, a lanx was generally a large serving platter, about 15 by 20 inches in size.Lysons, ...

, which was the first lanx discovered in Britain indicated that it was "church plate."Johns, Catherine & Painter, Kenneth
"The Risley Park Lanx 'rediscovered'(abstract)"
''Minerva'' 2(6) 1991, 6–13.

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Further reading