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Flamen Dialis

Flamen Dialis. Responsible for cult of Jupiter Became the chief religious official if the Pontifex Maximus was out of Rome Many strange restictions on his lifestyle Had to be married (in the confarreatio ritual) He and his wife could be once-married only

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Flamen Dialis

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  1. Flamen Dialis • Responsible for cult of Jupiter • Became the chief religious official if the PontifexMaximus was out of Rome • Many strange restictions on his lifestyle • Had to be married (in the confarreatio ritual) • He and his wife could be once-married only • If his wife died, he ceased to be flamen • Was always to appear in his festival toga and wear a cone-shaped hat, even at home. If it fell off while he was conducting a ceremony he had to resign

  2. Flamen Dialis - could not wear clothing the involved a knot - fire must no be taken from his hearth - no one else could ever sleep in his bed - he was not allowed to ride a horse, touch a corpse, goats, uncooked meat, beans or ivy, see an army, or swear an oath - his hair had to be cut by a free man only, never by a slave - Could spend the day outside the city, but could never spend a night away from Rome • A difficult position to fill • Vacant between 87 and 12 BC

  3. The augurs • 15 priests • Interpreted omens or signs sent by the gods • Bird calls, flight, feeding habits, song • Natural phenomena, eg, lightning • Asked to make judgments on affairs of the state and private individuals • Whatever an augur should declare to be unjust, unlawful, or ill-omened, should be null and void (Cicero, On the Laws, 2.20-2.21)

  4. The Quindecimviri • 15 priests • Quindecimviri sacris faciendis – ‘fifteen men conducting sacred rites’ • Guarded Sibylline books, consulted them and interpreted the oracles when the senate asked them to do so • Responsible for the admission of new oracles • Supervised foreign cults when these reached Rome

  5. The Quindecimviri Dionysus of Halicarnassus notes that the Senate ordered the quindecimvirs to consult the Sybilline books and give advice “when political strife gripped the city, when a great calamity had happened in war, or when a portent or prodigy had appeared that was difficult to interpret.” Antiquities 4.62

  6. The Epulones • ‘feast organisers’ • 10 • Organised public feasts at major festivals and games

  7. Minor priesthoods • Salii – danced in honour of Mars in March • Luperci – performed the rites of the Lupercalia • Arval Brothers – secured numen for the crops by carrying out complicated ceremonies

  8. The haruspicies • Interpreted the will of the gods from the entrails of sacrificial victims, and occasionally other omens as well • No official limits on numbers • 60 by the time of Augustus • A paid position • Non-official priesthood • Lower-status than the other priesthoods

  9. Temple attendants • Full-time or part-time • Paid • Performed minor sacrifices, saw to the maintenance of the temple and guarded cult statues and gifts from worshippers

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