Original scientific paper
Lex arae Dianae in Aventino in the inscription from Salona
Silvia Bekavac
; Sveučilište u Zadru, Odjel za povijest umjetnosti, Zadar, Hrvatska
Abstract
In Salona, the centre of the Roman province of Dalmatia, on 9 September 137, when the consular office was held by Lucius Aelius Caesar and Publius Vibulius Pius, an altar (ara) dedicated
to Jupiter was set up. The very act of setting the ara up is of distinctly official character. Thus the supreme Roman god, Jupiter, was given the official attributes of Optimus and Maximus. Regularity of the consecration was supervised by the supreme city priest
(pontifex) Caius Iulius Severus, whereas the city magistrate (duovir) Caius Iulius Valens, by saying the magic formula in a regular rhythm of listing, set all the rules necessary at setting the ara up and performing offerings. Wishing to secure that all the actions related to the
very ara and the area surrounding it are in line with the law, he referred to lex arae Dianae in Aventino, thereby referring to older sacral laws presented in the Diana's temple on the Aventine Hill, the setting up of which being attributed to the Roman king Servius Tulius. Besides
in Salona, inscriptions of similar character have been found in Narbum and Ariminum. The lex arae Dianae in Aventino was also referred to by the city magistrates at the dedication of the Numen Augusti in Narbum and of the sanctuary of the goddess Solus in Ariminum. By analysing the discovered inscriptions and presenting the facts stated by the Greek
historians about founding the Aventine temple as the centre of the federal cult, the paper comes to conclusion that lex arae Dianae in Aventino were presented in the goddess's temple set up at the Rome's highest hill, outside the city's sacral borders. These were referred
to only in the cases of specific cult activities, and this with a distinctly official character. Although we do not know what this law stipulated, it was clear to the priests or the magistrates who consecrated arae and sanctuaries. Since it is referred to at doing dedications to other deities as well, it is clear that the law did not relate to the cult of Diana. Therefore, it could have been related to the legislative and cult regulations meant to provide correct managing the sanctuary or the cult area after its establishing. Its practicing very nicely depicts the official nature of Roman ceremonies and the official cult, indicating establishing
of a closer relationship of the city communities with the imperial authorities, that was achieved best through such regulated cult activities. Obviously, the Roman Empire functioned as a unique organism, with its centre in Rome that was closely connected with the
periphery.
Keywords
Salona; lex arae Dianae in Aventino; Diana Aventina; Diana Nemorensis; sacral borders
Hrčak ID:
247203
URI
Publication date:
1.12.2020.
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