| Sumario: | According to Plutarch (Sulla 29.11–12), Sulla, when he went into battle, always carried in his bosom a little golden image of Apollo from Delphi. F. J. Dölger argued in an influential article that this image was a battle amulet, but there is no evidence that especially the Delphic or Pythian Apollo concerned himself with the safety of soldiers in battle. Drawing on neglected parallels in Lucian, Tacitus, and the Greek magical papyri, as well as a series of inscribed gemstones, this article argues that Sulla most probably used his golden agalmation as a personal oracle to predict or guide the success of his military campaigns.
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