Patera

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A patera (reverse, right, under the lituus) as cult instrument, in this coin celebrating the pietas of the Roman Emperor Herennius Etruscus.

The word 'patera' has various meanings:

• A patera was a broad, shallow dish used for drinking, primarily in a ritual context such as a libation.

• Patera (pl. paterae) is used in astrogeology to refer to shallow craters with irregular, sometimes scalloped rims.

• A Patera (plural pateras) is, in architecture, a shallow circular decorative element, typically found on walls or at the junction of straight decorative elements such as ceiling coffers.

• In the Spanish language, a patera is a type of boat. In current usage it refers to any of the floating devices used by African people smugglers to transport illegal immigrants from Africa to Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands (more recently also to Gran Canaria and Tenerife) or across the Strait of Gibraltar to Andalusia. The poor state of the boats, overcrowding, and lack of sea experience often result in massive drownings. Patera operators have been known to intentionally throw their passengers overboard if they need to flee the coast guard.

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