[1] The statue was discovered in 1880 on or beneath Bar Convent, York along with three religious altars.

[5] It was carved "with great dexterity" from local sandstone and may originally have come from the fortress at Eboracum.

Mars is depicted as a youthful soldier, wearing a Greek helmet and bearing a large oval shield held in his left arm.

In the 1980s the statue was on display as part of an exhibition titled "Roman Life at the Yorkshire Museum".

The new exhibition, "Roman York - Meet the People of the Empire" features the statue as a central piece of the display and is situated at the entrance into the main hall of the museum.