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Book Cover
E-book
Author DiLuzio, Meghan J., 1981- author.

Title A place at the altar : priestesses in Republican Rome / Meghan J. DiLuzio
Published Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2016]

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Description 1 online resource
Contents Introduction -- The Flamen and Flaminica dialis -- Priestly couples -- Salian virgins, sacerdotes, and ministrae -- The Vestal Virgins -- The costume of the Vestal Virgins -- The ritual activities of the Vestal Virgins -- The Vestal Virgins in Roman politics -- Conclusion
Summary "A Place at the Altar illuminates a previously underappreciated dimension of religion in ancient Rome: the role of priestesses in civic cult. Demonstrating that priestesses had a central place in public rituals and institutions, Meghan DiLuzio emphasizes the complex, gender-inclusive nature of Roman priesthood. In ancient Rome, priestly service was a cooperative endeavor, requiring men and women, husbands and wives, and elite Romans and slaves to work together to manage the community's relationship with its gods. Like their male colleagues, priestesses offered sacrifices on behalf of the Roman people, and prayed for the community's well-being. As they carried out their ritual obligations, they were assisted by female cult personnel, many of them slave women. DiLuzio explores the central role of the Vestal Virgins and shows that they occupied just one type of priestly office open to women. Some priestesses, including the flaminica Dialis, the regina sacrorum, and the wives of the curial priests, served as part of priestly couples. Others, such as the priestesses of Ceres and Fortuna Muliebris, were largely autonomous. A Place at the Altar offers a fresh understanding of how the women of ancient Rome played a leading role in public cult"-- Provided by publisher
Analysis Bona Dea
December rites
Fordicidia
Fortuna Muliebris
Jupiter
Magna Mater
October House
Roman politics
Roman priesthood
Roman religion
Roman ritual system
Roman society
Roman women
Salian Virgins
Vesta
Vestal Virgins
Vestal costume
Vestal priesthood
Vestal regalia
Vestal virgins
Vestals
ancient Rome
authority
birth families
collegium pontificum
cultic assistants
female sacrificial incapacity
feminine virtue
fertility
flamen Martialis
flamen
flamines
flaminica Dialis
flaminica Martialis
flaminicae
food supply
freedwomen
gender constructions
internal autonomy
laywomen
leadership
male authority
mola salsa
moral probity
palla
pax deorum
pontifex
pontifical college
priest
priestess
priestesses
priestly couples
priestly service
public careers
public cult
public cults
public priestesses
public ritual
public slaves
regina sacrorum
religion
religious activities
religious official
religious orders
religious roles
religious service
rex sacrorum
ritual activities
ritual impurity
ritual purity
rituals
sacerdotes
saliae virgines
seni crines hairstyle
suffibulum
tunica
virginity
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index
Notes In English
Print version record
Subject Women priests -- Rome
BODY, MIND & SPIRIT -- Spirituality -- Paganism & Neo-Paganism.
RELIGION -- Antiquities & Archaeology.
RELIGION -- Ancient.
Religion
Women priests
Priesterin
Staatskult
SUBJECT Rome -- Religion. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh96009771
Rome -- Religious life and customs
Subject Rome (Empire)
Römisches Reich
Form Electronic book
ISBN 1400883032
9781400883035