2008 Beltane
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Load more
Recommended publications
-
1 the Politics of the Arena
THE POLITICS OF THE ARENA 1 1 The Politics of the Arena Origin and Growth of Games The great games of the ancient Mediterranean grew out of religious holidays to become spectacular celebrations of the divine pantheon, events that not only called upon divine support to ensure continued prosperity for the state, but also offered an elaborate, formalized series of actions that encouraged, even required, the participation of an expanded human audience. These spectacles tended to follow a standard format of procession, sacrifice, and games. The procession, the first part of the festival, was, practically speaking, a means of conveying the worshipers, the officiants, and their implements of worship to the sacred space of the altar or temple. To enhance the ritual quality of the movement, the procession followed a specific, religiously significant pathway; the personnel were arranged in a specific order; the participants wore particular kinds of clothing, spoke or sang ritual words. These guidelines could involve sacrificial animals in the procession as well, who not only would be draped in wreaths or ribbons, to set them apart from “common” animals, to make them “sacred”, but also were meant to conform to certain kinds of behavior: they had to seem willing to approach the altar, and cult officials who accompanied them made sure of this. The procession was followed by the sacrifice. Sacrifice was the basic act of Graeco-Roman religion, establishing a positive relationship between deity and worshiper through the offering of a gift; this could mean the immolation of an animal, the pouring of a wine or oil libation, or setting cakes or flowers on the god’s altar for his enjoyment. -
Roman Entertainment
Roman Entertainment The Emergence of Permanent Entertainment Buildings and its use as Propaganda David van Alten (3374912) [email protected] Bachelor thesis (Research seminar III ‘Urbs Roma’) 13-04-2012 Supervisor: Dr. S.L.M. Stevens Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 3 1: The development of permanent entertainment buildings in Rome ...................................... 9 1.1 Ludi circenses and the circus ............................................................................................ 9 1.2 Ludi scaenici and the theatre ......................................................................................... 11 1.3 Munus gladiatorum and the amphitheatre ................................................................... 16 1.4 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 19 2: The uncompleted permanent theatres in Rome during the second century BC ................. 22 2.0 Context ........................................................................................................................... 22 2.1 First attempts in the second century BC ........................................................................ 22 2.2 Resistance to permanent theatres ................................................................................ 24 2.3 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... -
Calendar of Roman Events
Introduction Steve Worboys and I began this calendar in 1980 or 1981 when we discovered that the exact dates of many events survive from Roman antiquity, the most famous being the ides of March murder of Caesar. Flipping through a few books on Roman history revealed a handful of dates, and we believed that to fill every day of the year would certainly be impossible. From 1981 until 1989 I kept the calendar, adding dates as I ran across them. In 1989 I typed the list into the computer and we began again to plunder books and journals for dates, this time recording sources. Since then I have worked and reworked the Calendar, revising old entries and adding many, many more. The Roman Calendar The calendar was reformed twice, once by Caesar in 46 BC and later by Augustus in 8 BC. Each of these reforms is described in A. K. Michels’ book The Calendar of the Roman Republic. In an ordinary pre-Julian year, the number of days in each month was as follows: 29 January 31 May 29 September 28 February 29 June 31 October 31 March 31 Quintilis (July) 29 November 29 April 29 Sextilis (August) 29 December. The Romans did not number the days of the months consecutively. They reckoned backwards from three fixed points: The kalends, the nones, and the ides. The kalends is the first day of the month. For months with 31 days the nones fall on the 7th and the ides the 15th. For other months the nones fall on the 5th and the ides on the 13th. -
Cicero a Study of Gamesmanship in the Late
CICERO A STUDY OF GAMESMANSHIP IN THE LATE REPUBLIC A Thesis Presented to the faculty of the Department of History California State University, Sacramento Submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in History by Eugene H. Boyd FALL 2018 © 2018 Eugene H. Boyd ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii CICERO A STUDY OF GAMESMAN SHIP IN THE LATE REPUBLIC A Thesis by Eugene H. Boyd Approved by: __________________________________, Committee Chair Nikolaos Lazaridis, PhD. __________________________________, Second Reader Jeffrey Brodd, PhD. ____________________________ Date iii Student: Eugene H. Boyd I certify that this student has met the requirements for format contained in the University format manual, and that this thesis is suitable for shelving in the Library and credit is to be awarded for the thesis. __________________________Graduate Coordinator ___________________ Jeffrey Wilson, PhD Date Department of History iv Abstract of CICERO A STUDY OF GAMESMANSHIP IN THE LATE REPUBLIC by Eugene H. Boyd Roman politics during the final decades of the Late Republic was a vicious process of gamesmanship wherein lives of people, their families and friends were at the mercy of the gamesmen. Cicero’s public and political gamesmanship reflects the politics, class and ethnic biases of Roman society and how random events impacted personal insecurities. ______________________ _, Committee Chair Nikolaos Lazaridis, PhD. ____________________________ Date v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The process of obtaining a Master’s degree, I have found, is not an independent, isolated experience. Citing a contemporary adage, “It takes a village.” Truer words have never by spoken. To that end, I would like to recognize in the most warmly and thankful manner, the people in my “village” who helped me through the graduate study program and eventual master’s degree. -
Pompey and Cicero: an Alliance of Convenience
POMPEY AND CICERO: AN ALLIANCE OF CONVENIENCE THESIS Presented to the Graduate Council of Texas State University-San Marcos in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of ARTS by Charles E. Williams Jr., B.A. San Marcos, Texas May 2013 POMPEY AND CICERO: AN ALLIANCE OF CONVENIENCE Committee Members Approved: ______________________________ Pierre Cagniart, Chair ______________________________ Kenneth Margerison ______________________________ Elizabeth Makowski Approved: ______________________________ J. Michael Willoughby Dean of the Graduate College COPYRIGHT by Charles E. Williams Jr. 2013 FAIR USE AND AUTHOR’S PERMISSION STATEMENT Fair Use This work is protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States (Public Law 94- 553, section 107). Consistent with fair use as defined in the Copyright Laws, brief quotations from this material are allowed with proper acknowledgment. Use of this material for financial gain without the author’s express written permission is not allowed. Duplication Permission As the copyright holder of this work I, Charles E. Williams Jr., authorize duplication of this work, in whole or in part, for educational or scholarly purposes only. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Above all I would like to thank my parents, Chuck and Kay Williams, for their continuing support, assistance, and encouragement. Their desire to see me succeed in my academic career is perhaps equal to my own. Thanks go as well to Dr Pierre Cagnart, without whom this work would not have been possible. His expertise in Roman politics and knowledge concerning the ancient sources were invaluable. I would also like to thank Dr. Kenneth Margerison and Dr. Elizabeth Makowski for critiquing this work and many other papers I have written as an undergraduate and graduate student. -
Reading Death in Ancient Rome
Reading Death in Ancient Rome Reading Death in Ancient Rome Mario Erasmo The Ohio State University Press • Columbus Copyright © 2008 by The Ohio State University. All rights reserved. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Erasmo, Mario. Reading death in ancient Rome / Mario Erasmo. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8142-1092-5 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8142-1092-9 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Death in literature. 2. Funeral rites and ceremonies—Rome. 3. Mourning cus- toms—Rome. 4. Latin literature—History and criticism. I. Title. PA6029.D43E73 2008 870.9'3548—dc22 2008002873 This book is available in the following editions: Cloth (ISBN 978-0-8142-1092-5) CD-ROM (978-0-8142-9172-6) Cover design by DesignSmith Type set in Adobe Garamond Pro by Juliet Williams Printed by Thomson-Shore, Inc. The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials. ANSI 39.48-1992. 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Contents List of Figures vii Preface and Acknowledgments ix INTRODUCTION Reading Death CHAPTER 1 Playing Dead CHAPTER 2 Staging Death CHAPTER 3 Disposing the Dead 5 CHAPTER 4 Disposing the Dead? CHAPTER 5 Animating the Dead 5 CONCLUSION 205 Notes 29 Works Cited 24 Index 25 List of Figures 1. Funerary altar of Cornelia Glyce. Vatican Museums. Rome. 2. Sarcophagus of Scipio Barbatus. Vatican Museums. Rome. 7 3. Sarcophagus of Scipio Barbatus (background). Vatican Museums. Rome. 68 4. Epitaph of Rufus. -
20 Religion As a Key Factor for Resilience: from Rome to Constantinople
20-II Religion as a Key Factor for Resilience: From Rome to Constantinople 11:50 - 13:20 Wednesday, 1st September, 2021 Giorgio Ferri 261 Notes on the Carmina Marciana and the Calendrical Position of the Ludi Apollinares Gianmarco Grantaliano Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain. Università "Sapienza", Roma, Italy Abstract In 212 BC, in the middle of the Second Punic War, the ludi Apollinares were established iby a prescription by the carmina Marciana. The two carmina, built post eventum after the battle of Cannae, set in competition with the official Roman religion, particularly with the priesthood of the decemviri sacris faciundis that consulted the libri Sybillini after an express order by the Senate. After the first celebration, the ludi became yearly in 208 BC and took place in July (Quintilis) 13th. The aim of my study is to try to discuss the calendrical position of the ludi and their relationship with the other festivities of the Roman calendar (e.g. dies Alliensis, transvectio equitum, nonae Caprotinae, etc.) and, consequently, with the history of the city. I will try to demonstrate how the calendrical position itself was a quick response that Rome was able to give in one of the worst moments of the war. Moreover, I will try to demonstrate some possible consequences of that resilience that necessarily altered the representation of the power relationships in Rome’s political and religious structures. 128 The End of Imperial Cult in Hispania: Religious Change and Transition Noelia Cases Mora Universidad de Alicante, Alicante, Spain Abstract The chronology and development of the Imperial cult are one of the most valuable signals of political and religious change. -
African Women in the Gladiatorial Games of Rome
“Usually, when people talk about the "strength" of black women . they ignore the reality that to be strong in the face of oppression is not the same as overcoming oppression, that endurance is not to be confused with transformation.” – Bell Hooks* African Women in the Gladiatorial Games of Rome By Marjorie Charlot y interest in finding African women who were gladiators, or who were forced M to take part in arena games in history, began after watching the film Gladiator. This film starring the actor Russell Crowe showed a black woman driving a chariot around the Roman coliseum. I found this fascinating, as I had never heard of female gladiators, let alone of black women, fighting in the arena. Despite extensive inquiry into the subject, the names of these women regrettably are lost to history. However, I discovered that Ethiopian men and women, and in one case even children, were thrown into the arena to participate in this heinous form of entertainment. Women took part in gladiatorial combat under diverse circumstances; they had to take a stand for their own or for others’ freedom, or pay a price for their beliefs and, in doing so, showed remarkable bravery. Although some women would willingly take part in the gladiatorial games, it is clear that many women and men were forced to participate. A Brief History To say the games held in the arenas of ancient Roma were violent would be an understatement. The Romans’ thirst for blood and violence knew no boundaries, for no one was Sankofa Griotte Journal (Vol.1, No.1): 4 -21. -
Augustus - the Engineering of Belief & the Pax Deorum Part 2 in a Serial Study of the Pax Deorum
Athens Journal of Mediterranean Studies- Volume 5, Issue 2 – Pages 79-88 Augustus - The Engineering of Belief & the Pax Deorum Part 2 in a Serial Study of the Pax Deorum David P. Wick The Emperor Augustus would believe at the end of his life that he had rekindled at least a functioning image of the archaic Roman religious spirit in the major arteries of his empire and at least in its Greek and Italian regions, and in his city. His contemporaries seem to have agreed that they could see this happening, even when they acknowledged it as an act of propaganda in some sort. Modern scholars have been more inclined to see through it, or to see only the propaganda, or an event staged by a managed, state religion. My intent in this study – the second of three parts (Wick (2019a & 2019b) – has been to examine the attempt by Augustus to stage (before and during the year 17 of the old era) what he hoped or argued would be a transformative event, one that might re-create the family religious solidarity and wholeness of community he and his wife believed the Roman world needed to survive. This study focuses on the design of the Saeculares event itself – its use of ‘captive’ popular literature, themes of family and repentance in ritual acts, objects and liturgy, uses of the symbolic teaching nature of spaces in the Roman cityscape, and the participation of Augustus and his wife themselves (and their use of their own property in the cityscape to press the redeeming nature of the rather non-Roman god Apollo) as well as the Greek birth-deity Eilithyia. -
Roman Ludi Saeculares from the Republic to Empire
Roman Ludi Saeculares from the Republic to Empire by Susan Christine Bilynskyj Dunning A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Classics University of Toronto © Susan Christine Bilynskyj Dunning 2016 Roman Ludi Saeculares from the Republic to Empire Susan Christine Bilynskyj Dunning Doctor of Philosophy Department of Classics University of Toronto 2016 Abstract This dissertation provides the first comprehensive analysis of the Roman Ludi Saeculares, or “Saecular Games”, from their mythic founding in the sixth century bce until their final celebration in 248 ce. The Ludi Saeculares were a series of religious celebrations held at Rome every saeculum (“age”, “generation”), an interval of 100 or 110 years. The argument contains two major threads: an analysis of the origins and development of the Ludi Saeculares themselves, and the use of the term saeculum in imperial rhetoric in literary, epigraphic, and numismatic sources from early Republic to the fifth century ce. First, an investigation into Republican sacrifices that constitute part of the lineage of the Ludi Saeculares reveals that these rites were in origin called “Ludi Tarentini”, and were a Valerian gentilician cult that came under civic supervision in 249 bce. Next, it is shown that in his Saecular Games of 17 bce, Augustus appropriated the central rites of the Valerian cult, transforming them into “Ludi Saeculares” through a new association with the concept of the saeculum, and thereby asserting his role as restorer of the Republic and founder of a new age. The argument then turns to the development of saeculum rhetoric throughout the imperial period, intertwined with the history of the Ludi Saeculares. -
Dionysius of Halicarnassus and the 'Founders' of Rome
Dionysius of Halicarnassus and the ‘Founders’ of Rome: Depicting Characters in the Roman Antiquities by Beatrice Poletti A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Classical Languages Department of History and Classics University of Alberta © Beatrice Poletti, 2018 ABSTRACT In my thesis, I analyze Dionysius’s presentation of some of the most celebrated characters of Rome’s early past: Aeneas, Romulus, Numa Pompilius, L. Junius Brutus, and M. Furius Camillus. The thesis is composed of Five Chapters, an introduction, and a conclusion. In Chapter 1, I describe the background to Dionysius’s arrival in Rome, focusing on the literary milieu of the capital. In Chapter 2, I discuss Dionysius’s work and the ideas underlying the conception of the Roman Antiquities. In Chapter 3, I examine Dionysius’s account of the Aeneas legend. I deal with the legends of Romulus and Numa, respectively, at Chapters 4.1.1 and 4.2, and 4.1.2 and 4.3. My analysis of the stories of L. Junius Brutus and M. Furius Camillus occupies Chapters 5.1 and 5.2. I have chosen these characters for my study because of their significance in the Romans’ conception of their early past and their association with key events and institutions of Roman history, as well as the political meaning which their figures eventually acquired. By Dionysius’s time, all these characters (with the exception of L. Brutus) had come to embody the qualities and political virtues of the princeps. Aeneas was the progenitor of the Roman race as well as Augustus’s personal ancestor through his adoption into the gens Julia. -
Lorica Nostra: Saturnalia Edition
December 10, 2017 Lorica Nostra: Saturnalia Edition Key Dates: Christmas Carols from Magistra Sunday, December 17: quae sunt haec carmina Diēī Nātālis Christī? Satrunalia 1. Nox Silēns 2. Ō Sancta Nox 3. Santa Claus ad Oppidum Venit Saturday, March 4. Tintinābula Tintinantia 3: Carcer 5. Duodecim Diēs Nātālis Diēī Christī 6. Accidit Mediā Nocte Clārā 7. Ecce, Angelī Nūntiantēs Cantant Friday and 8. Salvēte, Laetī Comitēs 9. Sumus Trēs Rēgēs Orientis Saturday, April 10.Bonus Wenceslaüs Rēx Prōspectāvit 13 & 14: CJCL 11.Ātria Vēlāte Ramīs Aquifoliī 12.Avia ā Tarandrō Necāta est Convention at 13.Gaudium Mundō Menlo School 14.Rudolphus, Nāsō Rubrō Tarandrum 15.Aderō Domī Diē Nātālī Christī 16.Somniō dē Diē Nātālī Christī Albō 17.Adeste, Fīdēlēs 18.Brūmā Immitī 19.Prīmō Diē Nātālī Christī 20.Ō Parve Vīce Bethlehem 21.Tympanīsta Parvulus 22.Volumus Tē Diem Nātālem Christī Festum da magistrae aut magistrō tuās explicātiōnēs! 1 December 10, 2017 2017-2018 A Convention Update from Menlo JCL your Consuls Officers: The last month, Menlo JCL has been hard at work on the 2018 State Co-consuls: Natalie Convention. As we finalize paperwork and prepare to send out Hilderbrand and registration packets to schools all over California, we have finished the Drew Wadsworth schedule, arranged food and hotels for the 1,300 delegates expected to arrive on Menlo campus in April, and continued to plan events, old and 1st. VPs: Bruce new alike. We are bringing back carpe amicum, which will be run by Tickner and Morgan senior Will Abbott; there will also be a Latin Lunch based on the Wyatt spoken Latin club run by seniors Katelyn Eustace and Connor Kennedy.