DOCSLIB.ORG

VIII. AUGUSTUS and the WEST the Fact That the Statue, Though Strongly

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

VIII. AUGUSTUS AND THE WEST The fact that the statue, though strongly associating the emperor with Apollo, was nevertheless in the library-that is, in a securely secular context­ may weIl reflect the new tone of moderation which is increasingly apparent in the overall policy of Octavian. By the victory of Actium, 2nd September 31 B.C., he had succeeded to Caesar's position as master of the Roman world. But with his sound grasp of political realities the new ruler saw that it would be necessary to find an accommodation with the forces that had been in op­ position to Caesar and longed for the old Republic. Though he might follow up some of Caesar's ideas, as Weinstock's study has shown, Octavian would have to set hirnself at a distance from Caesar, a political dictate that more than any religious consideration could explain why Caesar was not the first of the divi.' Yet it was just as essential for Octavian as it had been for Caesar that an appropriate religious basis should be found for the position he had won by conquest. The practice of the contemporary world required that the attach­ ment of the subject to the ruler should be grounded in a cult; ' it was for this reason that Caesar had consented to personal sacralization. But, though wor­ ship in one form or another was a political necessity,' a formal state cult such as had been accorded Hellenistic rulers would have looked monarchical and invited disaster. For one who claimed to defend Roman tradition and wanted, so he professed, to be merely princepsin a restored Republic it was out of the question to turn openly in that direction. Whatever religious honours he could allow would have to be consistent with the constitutional settlement of 28/27 B.C. and, if at all possible, in line with the observances of the Republic. The result was the adoption of a policy in Rome, differently devised for dif­ ferent sections of the society, which prohibited the direct worship of himself" while leaving room for wide-ranging honours that to all appearances put the I Habicht , "Augusteische Zeit" (above, Intr. III; note 7) 53 f. The festivals of Caesar never- theless remained in the calendar : Herz, " Kaiserfeste" (above, Intr. III; note 31) 1150. 2 Alföldi, Lorbeerbäume (above, Intr . V; note 46) 44. o Liebeschuetz, Cont inuity (above, Intr . 11 ; note 3) 67 f., 76. • Dio records that Augustus would not even allow astatue of himself to be set up by Agrippa in a building he intended to name after the emperor (the later Pantheon). Instead the statue was placed in the pronaos alongside one of Agrippa-clear definition of the emperor's status as a man-while in the temple was placed astatue of Divus Iulius along with statues of Mars and Venus (53, 27, 2 f.). Augustus thus refused in Rome the honour he appears to have earlier ac­ cepted in the temples of Italian municipalities. See "Gaius Iulius Caesar Octavianus" above, p. 78. The same outlook lies behind Augustus' action in melting down eighty silver statues that had been set up to himself in Rome: RG 24, 2; Suet., Aug. 52. The objection here was to the precious metal which could have been conceived as a divine honour; see further "Liturgy and Ceremonial" below, Vol. II. 84 INTRODUCTION Roman emperor on a par with Hellenistic monarchs. In the first place Octa­ vian found it expedient to accept a long list of isotheoi timai, some of which had already been bestowed upon Caesar:' state festivals celebrating his natalis, the major events of his career, his victories and his various adventus on returning to Rome from abroad;" special respect too for his Julian patronymic,' a form of honour that culminated in the name Augustus granted by the senate on 16th January, 27 B.C .8 To apply the name to the month of Sextilis was a shrewd stroke since it was on 1st August that Octavian had triumphed at Alexandria." Already in 30 B.C. the senate had decreed that of­ ferings of wine should be poured to his genius at all banquets public and private (CD 15, 19, 7), 10 a provision with which the Genius Augusti began its intrusion into private cult. 11But the major innovation came in 7 B.C . In reviv­ ing the cult of the Lares Compitales, which had fallen into neglect under the , Weinstock, DJ passim . 6 Weinstock, DJ209 f.; Herz, "Kaiserfeste" 1147-1150. For the birthday of Augustus as a new dies natalis of temples see P . Gros , Aurea Templa (BEFAR), Paris, 1976, 32 f. 1 For Dio's mention of the Julian tribe (29 B.C.) and the Julian Saepta on the Campus Martius (26 B.C .) see Weinstock, DJ 158-162. The inclusion of Octavian's name in the Carmen Saliare is mentioned by Augustus in RG 10, land specifically noted by Dio as isotheos (51,20, I) . For a more moderate view see A. D. Nock , Gnomon 8 (1932),516; further M. Le Glay, "Le culte de Rome et de Salus ä Pergame" in Studien zur Religion und Kultur Kleinasiens (Festschrift Kar! Dörner), Leiden , 1978,554, n. 41. • The word was of religious import and suggested divine characteristics without specifically calling hirn divine . For discussion see L. R. Taylor, "Livy and the Name Augustus", CR 32 (1918), 158-161; eadem, Divinity 158-160; P . A. Brunt and J . M. Moore, Res Gestae Divi Augusti, Oxford, 1970,77 f. ; Fears , Princeps (above, Intr. II; note 25) 119, n. 57 with bibl. ; id., " The Cult of Jupiter and Roman Imperial Ideology ", ANR W2, 17, I (1981) 3-141 at 57, n. 262; add F. Müller, "Augustus" , Meded. Koninkl. Acad. Wetenschap ., Afdel. Letterk. A 11 (1927) 245-347. Note that the word is translated into Greek by atßGlO"to" a title rat her than a name . For the date of the senate's decree see Degrassi, lnscrlt. 13, 2, p. 400. , Weinstock, DJ 155-158, noting that apart from Ist August, the festival of Victoria, the month was notable for its many connections with Caesar. For Victoria see " Roma et Augustus" below , pp . 113-118. For the re-naming of the mouth Sextilis in 8 rather than 27 B.C . see A.B. Bosworth, "Augustus and August: Some Pitfalls of Historical Fiction", HSCP 86 (1982), 151-170 at 164-166. 10 The libation seems to have been obligatory to all classes and must in effect have fostered loyalt y at every level of society. For discussion see Alföldi, Lorbeerbäume (above, Intr, V; note 46) 8, no . 30 with bibl ., 24 f., 56; cf. Gnomon 47 (1975), 166 f. ; Liebeschuetz, Cont inuity (above, Intr. II; note 3) 68 f. Dio states tha t the libation was poured to Octavian hirnself, but this has generally been taken to mean an offering to the emperor's genius; see further "Genius and Numen", note 2, Vol. 11.For the vessels from which libations were poured see V. von Gonzenbach, " Genius Augusti-Theos Sebastos", Stockholm St. in Class. Arch. (Festschrift C . Kerenyi) 5 (1968),81-117. Despite the fact that the natalis was the day when a man's genius was honoured, there appear to have been no offerings to the emperor's genius at the public ce1ebration of his natalis: Weinstock, DJ 215. 11 For the cult traditionally paid to the genius of the paterfamilias see in general Weinstock, DJ 205; H. Kunkel, Der römische Genius, (MDAI[R) Ergänzungsheft 20), Heidelberg, 1974; D. G. Orr, "Roman Domestic Religion : The Evidence of the Household Shrines", ANRW 2, 16,2 (1978) 1557-1591, especially 1569-1575. For the cult of the Lares see Bömer-Herz, "Unter­ suchungen" (above, Intr. V, note 38) 199 (zu S. 32) with bibl.; cf. 200 (zu S. 38)..
Recommended publications
  • The Politics of Roman Memory in the Age of Justinian DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the D

    The Politics of Roman Memory in the Age of Justinian DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the D

    The Politics of Roman Memory in the Age of Justinian DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Marion Woodrow Kruse, III Graduate Program in Greek and Latin The Ohio State University 2015 Dissertation Committee: Anthony Kaldellis, Advisor; Benjamin Acosta-Hughes; Nathan Rosenstein Copyright by Marion Woodrow Kruse, III 2015 ABSTRACT This dissertation explores the use of Roman historical memory from the late fifth century through the middle of the sixth century AD. The collapse of Roman government in the western Roman empire in the late fifth century inspired a crisis of identity and political messaging in the eastern Roman empire of the same period. I argue that the Romans of the eastern empire, in particular those who lived in Constantinople and worked in or around the imperial administration, responded to the challenge posed by the loss of Rome by rewriting the history of the Roman empire. The new historical narratives that arose during this period were initially concerned with Roman identity and fixated on urban space (in particular the cities of Rome and Constantinople) and Roman mythistory. By the sixth century, however, the debate over Roman history had begun to infuse all levels of Roman political discourse and became a major component of the emperor Justinian’s imperial messaging and propaganda, especially in his Novels. The imperial history proposed by the Novels was aggressivley challenged by other writers of the period, creating a clear historical and political conflict over the role and import of Roman history as a model or justification for Roman politics in the sixth century.
  • Ancient Religions: Public Worship of the Greeks and Romans by E.M

    Ancient Religions: Public Worship of the Greeks and Romans by E.M

    Ancient Religions: Public worship of the Greeks and Romans By E.M. Berens, adapted by Newsela staff on 10.07.16 Word Count 1,250 Level 1190L TOP: The temple and oracle of Apollo, called the Didymaion in Didyma, an ancient Greek sanctuary on the coast of Ionia (now Turkey), Wikimedia Commons. MIDDLE: The copper statue of Zeus of Artemision in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Greece. BOTTOM: Engraving shows the Oracle of Delphi, bathed in shaft of light atop a pedestal and surrounded by cloaked figures, Delphi, Greece. Getty Images. Temples Long ago, the Greeks had no shrines or sanctuaries for public worship. They performed their devotions beneath the vast and boundless canopy of heaven, in the great temple of nature itself. Believing that their gods lived above in the clouds, worshippers naturally searched for the highest available points to place themselves in the closest communion possible with their gods. Therefore, the summits of high mountains were selected for devotional purposes. The inconvenience of worshipping outdoors gradually suggested the idea of building temples that would offer shelter from bad weather. These first temples were of the most simple form, without decoration. As the Greeks became a wealthy and powerful people, temples were built and adorned with great splendor and magnificence. So massively were they constructed that some of them have withstood the ravages of This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. time. The city of Athens especially contains numerous remains of these buildings of antiquity. These ruins are most valuable since they are sufficiently complete to enable archaeologists to study the plan and character of the original structures.
  • Graham Jones

    Graham Jones

    Ni{ i Vizantija XIV 629 Graham Jones SEEDS OF SANCTITY: CONSTANTINE’S CITY AND CIVIC HONOURING OF HIS MOTHER HELENA Of cities and citizens in the Byzantine world, Constantinople and its people stand preeminent. A recent remark that the latter ‘strove in everything to be worthy of the Mother of God, to Whom the city was dedicated by St Constantine the Great in 330’ follows a deeply embedded pious narrative in which state and church intertwine in the city’s foundation as well as its subse- quent fortunes. Sadly, it perpetuates a flawed reading of the emperor’s place in the political and religious landscape. For a more nuanced and considered view we have only to turn to Vasiliki Limberis’ masterly account of politico-religious civic transformation from the reign of Constantine to that of Justinian. In the concluding passage of Divine Heiress: The Virgin Mary and the Creation of Christianity, Limberis reaffirms that ‘Constantinople had no strong sectarian Christian tradition. Christianity was new to the city, and it was introduced at the behest of the emperor.’ Not only did the civic ceremonies of the imperial cult remain ‘an integral part of life in the city, breaking up the monotony of everyday existence’. Hecate, Athena, Demeter and Persephone, and Isis had also enjoyed strong presences in the city, some of their duties and functions merging into those of two protector deities, Tyche Constantinopolis, tutelary guardian of the city and its fortune, and Rhea, Mother of the Gods. These two continued to be ‘deeply ingrained in the religious cultural fabric of Byzantium..
  • The Evolution of the Roman Calendar Dwayne Meisner, University of Regina

    The Evolution of the Roman Calendar Dwayne Meisner, University of Regina

    The Evolution of the Roman Calendar Dwayne Meisner, University of Regina Abstract The Roman calendar was first developed as a lunar | 290 calendar, so it was difficult for the Romans to reconcile this with the natural solar year. In 45 BC, Julius Caesar reformed the calendar, creating a solar year of 365 days with leap years every four years. This article explains the process by which the Roman calendar evolved and argues that the reason February has 28 days is that Caesar did not want to interfere with religious festivals that occurred in February. Beginning as a lunar calendar, the Romans developed a lunisolar system that tried to reconcile lunar months with the solar year, with the unfortunate result that the calendar was often inaccurate by up to four months. Caesar fixed this by changing the lengths of most months, but made no change to February because of the tradition of intercalation, which the article explains, and because of festivals that were celebrated in February that were connected to the Roman New Year, which had originally been on March 1. Introduction The reason why February has 28 days in the modern calendar is that Caesar did not want to interfere with festivals that honored the dead, some of which were Past Imperfect 15 (2009) | © | ISSN 1711-053X | eISSN 1718-4487 connected to the position of the Roman New Year. In the earliest calendars of the Roman Republic, the year began on March 1, because the consuls, after whom the year was named, began their years in office on the Ides of March.
  • What the Romans Knew Piero Scaruffi Copyright 2018 • Part II

    What the Romans Knew Piero Scaruffi Copyright 2018 • Part II

    What the Romans knew Piero Scaruffi Copyright 2018 http://www.scaruffi.com/know • Part II 1 What the Romans knew Archaic Roma Capitolium Forum 2 (Museo della Civiltà Romana, Roma) What the Romans Knew • Greek! – Wars against Carthage resulted in conquest of the Phoenician and Greek civilizations – Greek pantheon (Zeus=Jupiter, Juno = Hera, Minerva = Athena, Mars= Ares, Mercury = Hermes, Hercules = Heracles, Venus = Aphrodite,…) – Greek city plan (agora/forum, temples, theater, stadium/circus) – Beginning of Roman literature: the translation and adaptation of Greek epic and dramatic poetry (240 BC) – Beginning of Roman philosophy: adoption of Greek schools of philosophy (155 BC) – Roman sculpture: Greek sculpture 3 What the Romans Knew • Greek! – Greeks: knowing over doing – Romans: doing over knowing (never translated Aristotle in Latin) – “The day will come when posterity will be amazed that we remained ignorant of things that will to them seem so plain” (Seneca, 1st c AD) – Impoverished mythology – Indifference to metaphysics – Pragmatic/social religion (expressing devotion to the state) 4 What the Romans Knew • Greek! – Western civilization = the combined effect of Greece's construction of a new culture and Rome's destruction of all other cultures. 5 What the Romans Knew • The Mediterranean Sea (Mare Nostrum) – Rome was mainly a sea power, an Etruscan legacy – Battle of Actium (31 BC) created the “mare nostrum”, a peaceful, safe sea for trade and communication – Disappearance of piracy – Sea routes were used by merchants, soldiers,
  • Ancient Rome

    Ancient Rome

    Ancient Rome William E. Dunstan ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Lanham • Boulder • New York • Toronto • Plymouth, UK ................. 17856$ $$FM 09-09-10 09:17:21 PS PAGE iii Published by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom Copyright ᭧ 2011 by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. All maps by Bill Nelson. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review. The cover image shows a marble bust of the nymph Clytie; for more information, see figure 22.17 on p. 370. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Dunstan, William E. Ancient Rome / William E. Dunstan. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-7425-6832-7 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-7425-6833-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-7425-6834-1 (electronic) 1. Rome—Civilization. 2. Rome—History—Empire, 30 B.C.–476 A.D. 3. Rome—Politics and government—30 B.C.–476 A.D. I. Title. DG77.D86 2010 937Ј.06—dc22 2010016225 ⅜ϱ ீThe paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/ NISO Z39.48–1992. Printed in the United States of America ................
  • Vocabulary Unit 13

    Vocabulary Unit 13

    Vocabulary Unit 13 Origin of the days of the week Sunday: The name comes from the Latin dies solis, meaning "sun's day": the name of a pagan Roman holiday. It is also called Dominica (Latin), the Day of God. [French: dimanche; Italian: domenica; Spanish: domingo German: Sonntag;] Monday: The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon monandaeg, "the moon's day". This second day was sacred to the goddess of the moon. [French: lundi; Italian: lunedi. Spanish: lunes. German: Montag] Tuesday: This day was named after the Norse god Tyr. The Romans named this day after their war-god Mars: dies Martis. [French: mardi; Italian: martedi; Spanish: martes.] Wednesday: The day named to honor Wodan (Odin). The Romans called it dies Mercurii, after their god Mercury. [French: mercredi; Italian: mercoledi; Spanish: miércoles. German: Mittwoch] Thursday: The day named after the Norse god Thor. In the Norse languages this day is called Torsdag. The Romans named this day dies Jovis ("Jove's Day"), after Jove or Jupiter. [French: jeudi; Italian: giovedi; Spanish: jueves.] Friday: The day in honor of the Norse goddess, Frigg. To the Romans this day was sacred to the goddess Venus, and was known as dies veneris. [French: vendredi; Italian: venerdi; Spanish: viernes. German: Freitag] Saturday: This day was called dies Saturni, "Saturn's Day", by the ancient Romans in honor of Saturn. In Anglo- Saxon: sater daeg. [French: samedi; Italian: sabato; Spanish: sábado. Origin of the months of the year January: Named after the Roman god of beginnings and endings Janus (the month Januarius). Janus was the keeper of the gates of heaven.
  • The Imperial Cult and the Individual

    The Imperial Cult and the Individual

    THE IMPERIAL CULT AND THE INDIVIDUAL: THE NEGOTIATION OF AUGUSTUS' PRIVATE WORSHIP DURING HIS LIFETIME AT ROME _______________________________________ A Dissertation presented to the Faculty of the Department of Ancient Mediterranean Studies at the University of Missouri-Columbia _______________________________________________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy _____________________________________________________ by CLAIRE McGRAW Dr. Dennis Trout, Dissertation Supervisor MAY 2019 The undersigned, appointed by the dean of the Graduate School, have examined the dissertation entitled THE IMPERIAL CULT AND THE INDIVIDUAL: THE NEGOTIATION OF AUGUSTUS' PRIVATE WORSHIP DURING HIS LIFETIME AT ROME presented by Claire McGraw, a candidate for the degree of doctor of philosophy, and hereby certify that, in their opinion, it is worthy of acceptance. _______________________________________________ Professor Dennis Trout _______________________________________________ Professor Anatole Mori _______________________________________________ Professor Raymond Marks _______________________________________________ Professor Marcello Mogetta _______________________________________________ Professor Sean Gurd DEDICATION There are many people who deserve to be mentioned here, and I hope I have not forgotten anyone. I must begin with my family, Tom, Michael, Lisa, and Mom. Their love and support throughout this entire process have meant so much to me. I dedicate this project to my Mom especially; I must acknowledge that nearly every good thing I know and good decision I’ve made is because of her. She has (literally and figuratively) pushed me to achieve this dream. Mom has been my rock, my wall to lean upon, every single day. I love you, Mom. Tom, Michael, and Lisa have been the best siblings and sister-in-law. Tom thinks what I do is cool, and that means the world to a little sister.
  • Calendar of Roman Events

    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.
  • 110// Here Followeth the Feast of St. Peter Ad Vincula, at Lammas [August 1]

    110// Here Followeth the Feast of St. Peter Ad Vincula, at Lammas [August 1]

    The Golden Legend or Lives Of The Saints Compiled by Jacobus de Voragine, Archbishop of Genoa, 1275 Englished by William Caxton, First Edition 1483 From the Temple Classics Edited by F.S. Ellis 110// HERE FOLLOWETH THE FEAST OF ST. PETER AD VINCULA, AT LAMMAS [AUGUST 1] The feast of St. Peter the apostle that is called ad Vincula was established for four causes. That is to wit, in remembrance of the deliverance of St. Peter, and in mind of deliverance of Alexander, for to destroy the customs of the paynims [pagans], and for to get absolution of spiritual bonds. THE DELIVERANCE OF ST. PETER nd the first cause which is in remembrance of St. Peter. For as it is said in the History AScholastic that Herod Agrippa went to Rome, and was right familiar with Gaius, nephew of Tiberius emperor. And on a day as Herod was in a chariot brought with Gaius, he lifted up his hands unto heaven and said: I would gladly see the death of this old fellow Peter, and the Lord of all the world. And the chariot man heard this word said of Herod, and anon told it to Tiberius. Wherefore Tiberius set Herod in prison. And as he was there he beheld on a day by him a tree, and saw upon the branches of this tree an owl which sat thereon, and another prisoner which was with him, that understood well divinations. said to him: Thou shalt be anon delivered, and shalt be enhanced to be a king, in such wise that thy friends shall have envy at thee, and thou die in that prosperity.
  • Fort Bend Harris Retired Educators News and Notes

    Fort Bend Harris Retired Educators News and Notes

    Fort Bend – Harris Retired Educators News and Notes Editor: Eleanor Blain Vol. 7 Issue 5 January 1, 2020 Photo by Evelyn Smith Heaven’s Echo Handbell Choir Entertains FBHRE Members Sally Buck, director, and thirteen handbell ringers from the Heaven’s Echo Handbell Choir provided entertain- ment for our December FBHRE meeting. Members of the choir are also members of various churches in the area, including Methodist, Baptist, and Mormon. They performed delightful arrangements of “Spirit Song,” “Japanese Time Clock,” “Lord of the Dance,” “Bare Necessities”; a medley of patriotic songs including “America the Beautiful,” “God of our Fathers,” and “My Country ‘Tis of Thee”; “Let There Be Peace on Earth”; and ended with “Jingle Bells.” Sally explained the history and technique of bell ringing. Bells dating back to 5th Century BC have been found in China, and Chinese bells with handles date back to the 1600s. Handbells used in the U.S.A. are descendants of England’s tower bells, which were arranged in numerical order and rung in patterns called change ringing. Smaller bells were developed so bell ringers could practice indoors and not disturb the community. The use of handbells peaked in the 1800s, waned, but once became popular again in the 1950s and 1960s and remain popular. Handbells are made of tin and copper, with handles made of vinyl, leather, or wood. Ringers wear gloves to avoid tarnishing the bells, and they can ring the bells or strike them with mallets. The smaller bells can be played two in hand. Special tonal qualities can be gained by ringing the bell and gently placing it on the padded table for an echo effect, moving it from side to side for vibrato, and damping it with the thumb, shoulder, or table.
  • 0 Contents.Qxd

    0 Contents.Qxd

    Chronology Chart 1-6 Roman Calendar Explanation At the time of Christ, the Roman calendar and dating system were used throughout the Roman Empire. The calendar derived from the old lunar calendar of the Etruscans, which was designed to keep record of times for religious observances and festivals, and which retained as principal days of the month the kalends (first), nones (fifth or seventh), and ides (thirteenth or fifteenth), based originally on the phases of the moon. The months had been restructured by the Romans into a solar calendar of twelve months with several intercalary days at the end of February. March was the first Roman month, making September the seventh, October the eighth, etc. These names derive from the Latin words for seven (septem), eight (octo), and so on. The Roman calendar was reformed by Julius Caesar in 45 B.C., which version operated in New Testament times and still forms the basis of our own modern calendar today. Roman years were numbered ab urbe condita, “from the founding of the city.” The year we call 753 B.C. was the Roman year 1, the year that Rome is believed to have been established. References John F. Hall, “March Gods and the Etruscan New Year,” in By Study and Also By Faith (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 1990), 1:643–58. A. K. Michels, The Calendar of the Roman Republic (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967). Charting the New Testament, © 2002 Welch, Hall, FARMS Roman Calendar Kalendae First day of the month Named for Mars, Martius the god of the New Year Named for Aprilia, Aprilis Idus The fifteenth of March, a goddess of spring May, July, and October, but the thirteenth of all Named for Maia, other months.