Religions of Rome

by Mary Beard , John North , Simon Price

• ISBN13: 9780521456463
• ISBN10: 0521456460
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-06-28
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

Volume two reveals the extraordinary diversity of ancient Roman religion. A comprehensive sourcebook, it presents a wide range of documents illustrating religious life in the Roman world - from the foundations of the city in the eighth century BC to the Christian capital more than a thousand years later. Each document is given a full introduction, explanatory notes and bibliography, and acts as a starting point for further discussion. Through paintings, sculptures, coins and inscriptions, as well as literary texts in translation, the book explores the major themes and problems of Roman religion, such as sacrifice, the religious calendar, divination, ritual, and priesthood. Starting from the archaeological traces of the earliest cults of the city, it finishes with a series of texts in which Roman authors themselves reflect on the nature of their own religion, its history, even its funny side. Judaism and Christianity are given full coverage, as important elements in the religious world of the Roman empire.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	viii
Preface	ix
Conventions and abbreviations	xiii
Earliest Rome	1	(25)
The deities of Rome	26	(34)
The calendar	60	(18)
Religious places	78	(38)
Festivals and ceremonies	116	(32)
Sacrifices	148	(18)
Divination and diviners	166	(28)
Priests and priestesses	194	(22)
Individuals and gods: life and death	216	(23)
Rome outside Rome	239	(21)
Threats to the Roman order	260	(28)
Religious groups	288	(61)
Perspectives	349	(16)
Glossary	365	(4)
Deities and their epithets	369	(2)
Bibliography	371	(31)
1 Literary texts	371	(4)
2 Secondary literature	375	(27)
Details of illustrations	402	(3)
Index of texts cited	405	(5)
General index	410