Aprilis

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salvete

I see it has been a while since I last posted a calendar update, but since the aediles are now looking at redesigning the site's calendar I thought I better get busy once more with working on editing its content. So here is April, a little late perhaps.


APRILIS


1 KALENDS F: Veneralia Women worship Venus Verticordia who turns their hearts towards faithfulness in marriage. Fortuna Virilis, women wearing myrtle wreaths enter the public baths in hope of improving their relationship with men.

2 IV Non Apr F: Dies Ater Fortune can carry off your wealth, but never your soul (Seneca Medea 176).

3 III Non Apr C: Natalis of Quirinus. Romulus, may you eternally live in Heaven among the children of the Gods (Ennius Annales 1.121.

4 Pridie Non Apr C: Megalasia Lavatoria of the image and cult symbola of Magna Mater by Her priestess. P. Scipio Nasica and the matrons of Rome greet the Magna Mater at Ostia, 204 BCE. Legend of Claudia Quinta.

5 Non Apr N: NONAE Megalasia Games for Fortuna Publica on Quirinal.

6 VIII Idus Apr NP: Dies Ater. Megalasia Caesar?s victory at Thapsus, 46 BCE, soon followed by suicide of Cato the Younger.

7 VII Idus Apr N: Megalasia Vediovis Justinian closes the Academy in Athens, 529 CE.

8 VI Idus Apr N: Megalasia Natalis of Castor and Pollux.

9 V Idus Apr N: Megalasia Divus Pius Severus (193 CE).

10 IV Idus Apr N: Megalasia Dedication of the Palatine Temple of Magna Mater, 191 BCE

11 III Idus Apr N:. Oracle of Fortuna Primigenia opened at Praeneste, where the duoviri offer Her a calf. Divus Septimius Severus, 211 CE. Birth of Pius Severus, 145 CE.

12 Prid Idus Apr N: Ludi Cereri The wise man will command his emotions, a fool obeys his (Publilius Syrus 41).

13 IDIBUS APRILIS NP: Ludi Cereri Temples of Jupiter Victor (295 BCE) and Jupiter Libertas (246 BCE)

14 XVIII Kal Mai N: Dies Ater. Ludi Cereri Vitellius defeated Otho at Bedriacum, 69 CE.

15 XVII Kal Mai NP: Ludi Cereri FORDICIDIA Sacrifice to Tellus of a pregnant cow, the ashes of the calf kept by Vestal Virgins and used in purification rite of Parilia. Supplicatio to Victoria Augusta in honor of victory at Mutina, 43 BCE. Battle of Bononia where Vibius Pansa defeated Anthony at, 43 BCE.

16 XVI Kal Mai N: Ludi Cereri A festival calls for singing and drinking and love-making. These are fit gifts to carry to the temples and please the gods (Ovid Amores 3.10.47-48).

17 XV Kal Mai N: Ludi Cereri Death of Proclus, 485 CE

18 XIV Kal Mai N: Ludi Cereri Golden-haired Ceres, bless this our farm; a crown of wheat I shall hang before your altar (Tibillus I.1.15-16).

19 XIII Kal Mai NP: CERIALIA Aventine Temple of Ceres, Liber and Libera (493 BCE). Sacrifice of pregnant sow to Ceres and a lectisternium held at Her temple, horse races in the Circus, and release of foxes in fields, their tails aflame.

20 XII Kal Mai N: Come to us, Bacchus, with clusters of grapes dangling from your horns, and you, too, Ceres, with a wreath of newly ripened wheat upon your temples, come! Gods of our fathers, we purify our farmers and our fruitful fields; we ask that you drive away harm from our borders. Let not the now sprouting plants succumb before harvest, let not the timid lambs be outrun by swift wolves (Tibillus II.1.3-4; 17-20).

21 XI Kal Mai NP: PARILIA Legendary Founding of Rome. Oves lustrantur, shepherds lead flocks in leaping over smoldering beanstalks. Flamen sacrifices to Pales, the Good Shepherd and Shepherdess.

22 X Kal Mai N: Cicero delivers the fourteen and last Philippic against Anthony.

23 IX Kal Mai F: VINALIA PRIORA New wine offered to Jupiter flamen Dialis in fulfillment of vow of Aeneas and plucks the first cluster of grapes. Temples to Venus Erucina dedicated in 215 and 181 BCE. Diana. Divus Augustus dedicated in Theater of Marcellus by Julia Augusta and Tiberius.

24 VIII Kal Mai C: Festival for prostitutes.

25 VII Kal Mai NP: ROBIGALIA Sacrifice of a dog at the fifth mile on the Via Claudia. Serapia, Quirinal Temple of Serapus (217 CE).

26 VI Kal Mai C: Birth of Marcus Aurelius, 121 CE. Short-lived are both the praiser and the praised (Med. 8.21)

27 V Kal Mai C: Ludi Florae est. 173 BCE as annual games, beginning with theatrical performances, the release of hares and goats and distribution of vetches, beans and lupines, followed by circus games and sacrifice to Flora. Defeat of Anthony at Mutina by Aulus Hirtius, who died in the battle, 43 BCE.

28 IV Kal Mai C: FLORALIA Temple of Flora in Circus Maximus (238 BCE) celebrated with

29 III Kal Mai C: Ludi Florae (Flora), I pray, sprinkle my heart with Your gifts (Ovid Fasti 5.378).

30 Pridie Kal Mai C: Ludi Florae A single flower does not a garden

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salvete

For Megalasia, from Julian the Blessed

Who is the Mother of the Gods? She is the source of the intellectual and creative gods, who, in their turn guide the visible gods: She is both the Mother and Spouse of mighty Jupiter; She came into being next to and together with the great creator; She is in control of every form of life, and the cause of all generation; She easily brings to perfection all things that are made, without pain She brings to birth, and with the Father's aid creates all things that are; She is the motherless maiden, enthroned at the side of Jupiter, and in very truth is the Mother of All the Gods. For having received into Herself the causes of all the gods, both intelligible and supramundane, She became the source of the intellectual gods. (VI. 112)

[Publius Dionysius Mus]

Salvete!

I thought this was an appropriate question to put here: where does the name Aprilis come from?

I have read suggestions like 'aperire' ('to open') but I can't find any clear answer to this question. Maybe someone on the forum here?

Valete bene

[Marce Moravi Horati Pisci]

Salve Mus

According to Varro, in Lingua Latina, Fulvius Flaccus and Junius said that April was dedicated to Venus, and that is what Ovid followed in his Fasti. Varro agreed about April being dedicated to Venus but doubted that its name was derived from Aphrodite as some claimed. This claim may have been based on an Etruscan form of Aphrodite. Instead Varro noted that none of the older books mentioned Venus?s association with April, and, most importantly, Cincius noted that there were no early festivals dedicated to Her in April. Instead Verrius Flaccus said that April was so named ?because it was the month when flowers and fruits and animals, as well as the seas and the earth begin to open (aperire).?

None of these commentators really had direct evidence to offer and simply offered their own opinions based on speculation. Most historians agree with Verrius Flaccus, and cite Cincius as the reason to accept it. So while our best explanation comes from Verrius Flaccus, there is still some doubt to its accuracy and my best guess is that it is wrong. Problem is that there is no other explanation to support.

Vale optime

[Aldus Marius]

Hmm... The ancients may not be saying much, but may we infer anything from the languages that grew out of Latin? I'm thinkin' Spanish, in particular; where the month is called Abril and the verb 'to open' (like flowers blooming, or unwrapping a present) is--you guessed it--abrir...


Reverse-engineering: Am I on to something here?

In fide,

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salvete comreligiones et sodales omnes

The Cerealia of April were Roman rites commemorating the plebeian Temple of Ceres, Liber and Libera, dedicated on the Aventine Hill in 493 BCE. These were not the women rites that Cicero attributed as ?Greek? in origin and which were led by a priestess of Ceres drawn from Campania (Pro Balbo 55). The latter rites were held in late September and October. Around the Cerealia, too, the flamen Cerialis sacrificed to Ceres according to the patrician cultus civile (Cicero De Legibus II.21). It was at such public sacrifices that the litany of Ceres called upon Her indigitamenta - Conditor, Convector, Imporcitor, Insitor, Messor, Occator, Promitor, Reparator, Sarritor, Subruncinator, Vervactor (Serv. Ad Geor. 1.21). Virgil and Tibullus refer to lustriones conducted in rural areas around this same time of year, and then again in Autumn (Georg. I.337-50; II.380-97 Tibullus I.1.15-16; I.1.19-24; II.i.3-4; 17-20). The Ceralia, however, was an urban celebration and originally distinct from what had been the patrician cultus civile. The Temple of Ceres, Liber and Libera was from its inception closely tied with the plebeian movement that brought many social, political and religious changes to Rome. As such the Cerealia became a means of introducing novelties to its rites that were later featured into the cultus civile.

The Cerealia was administered by the Aediles Plebis rather than priests. This went back to the origin of their offices as temple officials. Later when they became city magistrates, a chief function of the aediles was to hold public spectacles to entertain the Gods. Thus it was that theatrical performances were first introduced by C Memmius as the ludi scaenici in 175 BCE (Tact. Hist. 2.55.1 calls these ludi Ceriales). These were held 12-18 April. The ludi Circensis on 19 April consisted of horseraces held in the Circus Maximus (Ovid Fasti 4.679-80). Later still these were replaced by gladiatorial contests (Dio Cassius 47.40.6). Since the season?s shows were meant for the Gods to enjoy, Their images were carried in procession from the temple to the games, similar to the kinds of processions mentioned by Ovid (Amores III 2; Ars Amatoria 1.147). The games would then conclude with a sacrificial feast. Probably only a select group partook in the feast itself, but gifts were distributed to the crowd as well. The frumentatio was an occasional distribution of bread and/or grain from the temple to plebeians. The distribution made at Cerealia included a frumentatio and came to include much more. An aedilis was expected to provide better entertainment and show an increased abundance in Ceres? gifts each year, and by the Late Republic liberal expense by an aedilis could make his career, while a lack thereof would certainly ruin it.

The images of the Gods would then be carried in procession back to the temple and placed before opened doors on couches on the temple steps, with tables set before Them on which to place offerings. The crowds were allowed at that time to approach the temple, some kneeling before the Gods to give thanks. Three couches were set out for this lectisternium with a pair of images on each couch (GRF Cornuficius Longus De etymis deorum fr. 1). Quite possibly these were of Ceres and Tellus, Liber and Libera, and perhaps Consus and Ops. The scene was highly emotive as the crowd pressed forward, some still in a festive mood, others giving heartfelt expression of thanks for favors they had received, while still others would come imploring the Gods for Their aid.

The Temple of Ceres was a haven for the plebeians, offering a refuge for the destitute and legal asylum to others as well. Varro speaks of a cofugium, which is a flight to a God for protection, made into the asylum Cereris, with bread given to ?those who were lacking in wealth? (Nonius 63). The ius auxilii used by a Tribunus Plebis to protect Roman rights was an extension of the asylum Cereris. Some temple precincts offered sanctuary to runaway slaves, such as the sacred grove of Diana Nemorensis at Aricia. The Temple of Ceres, Liber, and Libera may have offered sanctuary to free but poor citizens threatened with slavery, until the law banned enslavement for debt, but does not seem to have taken in runaway slaves. The temple was always associated with the plebeians, whether wealthy or poor, and remained a center for plebeian political activity as well as a center of plebeian religious activity. It was where the plebeian treasury was stored. The aediles plebis could fine individuals who broke the law regarding use of the ager publica. Large donations were made to the temple itself from such fines. Property could be confiscated by the aediles in three instances, and when sold off the funds became a consecratio bonorum to Ceres. These instances were in the case of those held in sacro to Ceres for violating the sacrosanctitas of the Tribunus Plebis, the property of those who attempted tyranny, and in the case of an unjustified divorce. In the latter case a third of a couple?s property went to each, and the remaining third to Ceres. The temple was also the repository for written laws, decrees of the Senate and plebiscites of the Consilium Plebis. Ceres was Legifera, ?the Law Giver? (Virgil Aen. 4.58; Servius Ad Aen. 4.58). While it is known that bread was distributed to those who sought shelter at the temple, it is less certain but a likely possibility that Rome?s grain supply, the annona, was administered from the temple as well. The temple on the Aventine lay outside the pomerium and thus outside the old city proper. At times it was to the Aventine that the plebes had retired from the City during a secessio, in fact the establishment of the Temple of Ceres, Liber and Libera was one result of the first secessio to the Mons Sacra. The temple had been at the very heart of the movement that transformed the aristocracy of privileged patricians into a true republic where the principle of ?equal under the law? has since come to be the foundation of Western political systems. By the second century the plebeian movement had essentially succeeded, its temple officials recognized as city magistrates, all political and nearly all religious offices opened to the plebeians, and the Comitia held as the supreme authority in all political and religious matters. The Cerealia was thus a celebration of the res publica libera and the role that the Temple of Ceres, Liber and Libera had played in creating it.

Valete et vivete in pacis Cereri

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salvete

Well, I know I posted this before, but for Robigalia, Ovid, Fasti 4.911-14; 921-922:

Asperga Robiga, parceas Cerealibus herbis
Et tremat in summa leve cacumen humo.
Tu sata sideribus caeli nutrita secundi
Crescere, dum fiant falcibus apta, sinas
...
Parce, precor, scabrasque manus a messibus aufer
Neve noce cultis: posse nocere sat est.

Scaly Robigo, god of rust, spare Ceres' grain;
Let silky blades quiver on the soil's surface.
Let growing crops be nourished by friendly sky
and stars, until they ripen for the scythe
...
Spare us, I pray, keep scabrous hands from the harvest
Harm no crops. The power to harm is enough.


The sacrifices offered to Robigo included puppies, something usually reserved for the Di Inferni, but Robigo is associated with the stella appearance of Sirius. The flamen Quirinalis presented the sacrifice at an altar at the fifth mile along the Via Claudia. It is curious that Ovid said he was carrying these offerings in a procession in a manner that implies that the sacrifice was actually made at some other unknown location. The flamen would have stood at the altar while oriented on Sirius in the western sky, rather than the more general orientation to the East. That was because it was a nocturnal rite, which is something we find more often with goddesses. Ovid, Columella and Augustine of Hippo refer to the goddess Robigo, while Varro, Verrius Flaccus and others refer to the god Robigus. All in all this little rite points out how little we actually know about Roman practices.

Valete optime

[Aldus Marius]

Ave, mi Pisce...

Perhaps I've just overlooked it, but I didn't see an entry for the Armilustrum...? Was it in March again, like last year, or did it simply not make the cut?

I, a Roman of the Legions, have traditionally honored the twice-yearly Armilustrum (which generally occurs in April and October, conveniently enough marking the beginning and the end of the reenactor season) by sitting out on the porch and conditioning all my gear. I have felt a very strong connection with my numen legionis and with my ancestor-spirits during these times. Of course I'd like to do it again this year...but first I have to know when it is...! >({|:-)

In fide,

[Aldus Marius]

Guess What!

Robigalia 2757: the third anniversary of a certain Wanderer's achievement of escape velocity from a certain Cult disguised as an Internet micronation.

AAWOOOOOOOOOoooo!!!

Done howlin',

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salve Mari

We are in the process of totally redoing the calendar for Coll Rel. - new format, new informations and therefore rechecking my sources for everything. The armilustrum of April doesn't appear because I have not found any source for it. It does not appear on any of the fasti, or in the military calendar of Dura Europus. so if you have a source, or even someone's conjecture about it, I would like to hear from you on it.

I have read some old interpretations connecting the armilustrul of Oct with the tubilustrum, but the latter is not related to military ceremonies. It had to do with the Comitia that heard wills.

Happy anniversary btw AOWwwooooooooooooooooo