Romulus was followed by a Sabine, Numa Pompilius, who taught the Romans the arts of peace and the worship of the gods. Another king destroyed Alba Longa and Successors of brought the inhabitants to Rome. The last of Romulus Rome's seven kings was an Etruscan named Tarquin the Proud. His tyranny finally provoked an uprising, and Rome became a republic. These famous tales have become a part of the world's literature and still possess value to the student. They show us what the Romans themselves believed about the foun- Significance dation and early fortunes of their city. Sometimes of the myths they refer to what seem to be facts, such as the first settlement on the Palatine, the union with the Sabines on the Quirinal, the conquest of Alba Longa, and Etruscan rule at Rome. The myths also contain so many references to customs and beliefs that they are a great help in understanding the social life and religion of the early Romans. 50. Early Roman Society The Romans an agricultural people Agriculture was the chief occupation of the Roman people. “When our forefathers,” said an ancient writer, "would praise a worthy man, they praised him as a good farmer and a good landlord; and they believed that praise could go no further." 1 Roman farmers raised large crops of grain the staple product of ancient Italy. Cattle-breeding, also, must have been an important pursuit, since in early times prices were estimated in oxen and sheep.2 In such a community of peasants no great inequalities of wealth existed. Few citizens were very rich; few were very poor. The members of each household made their Economic own clothing from flax or wool, and fashioned out conditions of wood and clay what utensils were needed for their simple life. For a long time the Romans had no coined money whatever. When copper came into use as currency, it passed from hand to hand in shapeless lumps that required frequent weighing. It 2 See page 6. 1 Cato, De agricultura, 1. was not until the fourth century that a regular coinage began.1 This use of copper as money indicates that gold and silver were rare among the Romans, and luxury almost unknown. Hard-working, god-fearing peasants are likely to lead clean and sober lives. This was cer A ROMAN FARMER'S CALENDAR A marble cube, two feet high, of about 31-29 B.C. The month of May, XXXI days, The nones fall on the 7th day. The night has 9 hours. The sun is in the sign of Taurus. The month is under the protection of Apollo. The wool is washed. Young steers are put under the yoke. breed, abstemious in food and drink, iron-willed, vigorous, and strong. Deep down in the Roman's heart was the proud conviction that Rome should rule over all her neighbors. For this he freely shed his blood; for this he bore hardship, however severe, without complaint. Before everything else, he was a dutiful citizen and a true patriot. Such were the sturdy men who on their farms in Latium formed the backbone of the Roman state. Their character has set its mark on history for all time. The Roman The family formed the unit of Roman society. Its most marked feature wast he unlimited authority of the father. In his house he reigned an absolute king. His wife had no legal rights: he could sell her into slavery or divorce her at will. Nevertheless, no ancient people honored women more highly than the Romans. A Roman wife was the mistress of the home, as her husband was its master. Though her education was not carried far, we often find the Roman matron taking a lively inter1 See the illustration, page 7. est in affairs of state, and aiding her husband both in politics and business. It was the women, as well as the men, who helped to make Rome great among the nations. married daugh ters and his sons, the Roman father ruled as supreme as over his wife. He brought up his children to be sober, silent, modest in their bearing, and, above all, obedient. Their misdeeds he might punish with penalties as severe as Over his un-. These receptacles for the ashes of the dead were found in an old cemetery at Alba Longa. They show two forms of the primitive Roman hut. banishment, slavery, or death. As head of the family he could claim all their earnings; everything they had was his. The father's great authority ceased only with his death. Then his sons, in turn, became lords over their families. 51. Roman Religion Worship of ancestors The Romans, like the ancient Greeks and the modern Chinese, paid special veneration to the souls of the dead. These were known by the flattering name of manes, the "pure" or "good ones." The Romans always regarded the manes as members of the household to which they had belonged on earth. The living and the dead were thus bound together by the closest ties. The idea of the family triumphed even over the grave. The ancient Roman house had only one large room, the atrium, where all members of the family lived together. It was entered by a single door, which was sacred to the The housegod Janus. On the hearth, opposite the doorway, hold deities the housewife prepared the meals. The fire that ever blazed upon it gave warmth and nourishment to the inmates. Here dwelt Vesta, the spirit of the kindling flame. The cupboard where the food was kept came under the charge of the Penates, who blessed the family store. The house as a whole had its protecting spirits, called Lares. The daily worship of these deities took place at the family meal. The table would be placed at A VESTAL VIRGIN Portrait from a statue discovered in the ruins of the temple of Vesta in the Roman Forum. Worship of the side of the hearth, and when the father and his family sat down to it, a little food would be thrown into the flames and a portion of wine poured out, as an offering to the gods. The images of the Lares and Penates would also be fetched from the shrine and placed on the table in token of their presence at the meal. This religion of the family lasted with little change throughout the entire period of Roman history. The early Roman state was only an enlarged family, and hence the religion of the state Janus and Vesta was modeled after that Some of the divini of the family. ties, such as Janus and Vesta, were taken over with little change from the domestic worship. The entrance to the Forum formed a shrine of Janus,' which Numa himself was said to have built. The door, or gateway, stood open in time of war, but shut when Rome was at peace. At the south end of the Forum stood the round temple of Vesta, containing the sacred hearth of the city. Here Vesta was served by six virgins of free birth, whose duty it was to keep the fire always blazing on the altar. If by accident the fire went out, it must be relighted from a "pure flame," 1 Since a door (janua) had two sides, Janus, the door god, was represented with the curious double face which appears on Roman coins. (See the plate facing page 134.) The month of January in the Julian calendar was named for him. either by striking a spark with flint or by rubbing together two dry sticks. Such methods of kindling fire were those familiar to the prehistoric Romans. The Romans worshiped various gods connected with their lives as shepherds, farmers, and warriors. The chief divinity was Jupiter, who ruled the heavens and sent rain Jupiter and and sunshine to nourish the crops. The war god Mars Mars reflected the military character of the Romans. His The relief pictures an ancient Italian sacrifice of a bull, a ram, and a boar, offered to Mars to secure purification from sin. Note the sacred laurel trees, the two altars, and the officiating magistrate, whose head is covered with the toga. He is sprinkling incense from a box held by an attendant. Another attendant carries a ewer with the libation. In the rear is the sacrificer with his ax. sacred animal was the fierce, cruel wolf; his symbols were spears and shields; his altar was the Campus Martius (Field of Mars) outside the city walls, where the army assembled in battle array. March, the first month of the old Roman year, was named in his honor. Some other gods were borrowed from the Greeks, together with many of the beautiful Greek myths. Divination The Romans took many precautions, before beginning any enterprise, to find out what was the will of the gods and how their favor might first be gained. They did not have oracles, but they paid much attention to omens of all sorts. A sudden flash of lightning, an eclipse of the sun, a blazing comet, or an earthquake shock was an omen |