
Foreign Cults in Rome
Creating a Roman Empire
Eric Orlin(Author)
Oxford University Press Inc
Published on 30. September 2010
Book
Hardback
264 pages
978-0-19-973155-8 (ISBN)
Description
Religion is a particularly useful field within which to study Roman self-definition, for the Romans considered themselves to be the most religious of all peoples and ascribed their imperial success to their religiosity. This study builds on the observation that the Romans were remarkably open to outside influences to explore how installing foreign religious elements as part of their own religious system affected their notions of what it meant to be Roman. The inclusion of so many foreign elements posed difficulties for defining a sense of Romanness at the very moment when a territorial definition was becoming obsolete. Using models drawn from anthropology, this book demonstrates that Roman religious activity beginning in the middle Republic (early third century B.C.E.) contributed to redrawing the boundaries of Romanness. The methods by which the Romans absorbed cults and priests and their development of practices in regard to expiations and the celebration of ludi allowed them to recreate a clear sense of identity, one that could include the peoples they had conquered. While this identity faced further challenges during the civil wars of the Late Republic, the book suggests that Roman openness remained a vital part of their religious behavior during this time. Foreign Cults in Rome concludes with a brief look at the reforms of the first emperor Augustus, whose activity can be understood in light of Republican activity, and whose actions laid the foundation for further adaptation under the Empire.
Reviews / Votes
Its value lies ... in the overview that it provides, bringing together well- and lesser-known episodes from the period during which Roman expansion brought inevitable tensions in its wake, to explore these tensions in terms of choices made over which deities to include, and over when, where and how to pay them cult. ... a positive contribution to our understanding of the Roman Republic. * Anna Clark, Journal of Roman Studies *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Illustrations
2 black and white halftones , 2 line illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
561 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-973155-8 (9780199731558)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
08/2010
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€60.99
Available for download

E-Book
08/2010
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€46.99
Available for download
Person
Eric Orlin is Professor of Classics at the University of Puget Sound
Content
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS; INTRODUCTION; CONCLUSION; BIBLIOGRAPHY; INDEX