Within the temple were a statue of Mars and figures of wolves, which were considered sacred to the god. The statue of Mars was most probably the one erected by the former consul Marcus Claudius Marcellus in 211 BCE, fulfilling a vow made during the conquest of Syracuse in 212 BCE. The writer Julius Obsequens noted in his book the "Prodigiorum liber" (Book of Prodigies) that observers in the past had seen the statue sweating.