Lucaria
Encyclopedia
In ancient Roman religion
, the Lucaria was a festival
of the grove
(Latin lucus
) held July 19 and 21. The original meaning of the ritual was obscure by the time of Varro
(mid-1st century BC), who omits it in his list of festivals. The deity for whom it was celebrated is unknown; if a ritual for grove-clearing recorded by Cato
pertains to this festival, the invocation was deliberately anonymous (Si deus, si dea
). The dates of the Lucaria are recorded in the Fasti Amiterni, a calendar
dating from the reign of Tiberius
found at Amiternum
(now S. Vittorino
) in Sabine
territory.
The Augustan
grammarian Verrius Flaccus
connected the Lucaria to the disastrous defeat of the Romans by the Gauls
at the Battle of the Allia
, which was fought on July 18. The festival, he says, was celebrated in the large grove between the Via Salaria
and the Tiber river, where the Romans who survived the battle had hidden. The Via Salaria crossed the battlefield about 10 miles north of Rome. The lucus thus would have been located on the Pincian Hill
, which was later cultivated as gardens and leisure parks
by Lucullus
, Pompeius, Sallust
and others. This explanatory story has been compared to that of the Poplifugia
, which also involved the Gallic sack of Rome. The story may be more aetiological than historical. The Lucaria suggests that grove veneration was a practice which the early Romans had in common with the Gauls.
Like other "fixed holidays" (dies nefasti publici) on the Roman calendar
, the Lucaria took place on days of uneven number, with an intervening day that was "non-festive". A mention by Macrobius seems to imply that the festival began at night and continued the following day. Georg Wissowa
thought that it may have been connected to the Neptunalia
on July 23, when leafy huts were built as shelters against the hot summer sun and bulls were sacrificed. Neptune
embodied fresh as well as salt water among the Romans, and the collocation of festivals in July, including also the Furrinalia on the 25th, may express concerns for drought.
Religion in ancient Rome
Religion in ancient Rome encompassed the religious beliefs and cult practices regarded by the Romans as indigenous and central to their identity as a people, as well as the various and many cults imported from other peoples brought under Roman rule. Romans thus offered cult to innumerable deities...
, the Lucaria was a festival
Roman festivals
In ancient Roman religion, holidays were celebrated to worship and celebrate a certain god or divine event, and consisted of religious observances and festival traditions, usually with a large feast, and often featuring games . The most important festivals were the Saturnalia, the Consualia, the...
of the grove
Sacred grove
A sacred grove is a grove of trees of special religious importance to a particular culture. Sacred groves were most prominent in the Ancient Near East and prehistoric Europe, but feature in various cultures throughout the world...
(Latin lucus
Lucus
In ancient Roman religion, a lucus is a sacred grove.Lucus was one of four Latin words meaning in general "forest, woodland, grove" , but unlike the others it was primarily used as a religious designation...
) held July 19 and 21. The original meaning of the ritual was obscure by the time of Varro
Varro
Varro was a Roman cognomen carried by:*Marcus Terentius Varro, sometimes known as Varro Reatinus, the scholar*Publius Terentius Varro or Varro Atacinus, the poet*Gaius Terentius Varro, the consul defeated at the battle of Cannae...
(mid-1st century BC), who omits it in his list of festivals. The deity for whom it was celebrated is unknown; if a ritual for grove-clearing recorded by Cato
Cato the Elder
Marcus Porcius Cato was a Roman statesman, commonly referred to as Censorius , Sapiens , Priscus , or Major, Cato the Elder, or Cato the Censor, to distinguish him from his great-grandson, Cato the Younger.He came of an ancient Plebeian family who all were noted for some...
pertains to this festival, the invocation was deliberately anonymous (Si deus, si dea
Si deus si dea
Si deus si dea is an Archaic Latin phrase meaning "whether god or goddess", used to address a deity of unknown gender. It was also written sive deus sive dea, sei deus sei dea, or sive mas sive femina ....
). The dates of the Lucaria are recorded in the Fasti Amiterni, a calendar
Fasti
In ancient Rome, the fasti were chronological or calendar-based lists, or other diachronic records or plans of official and religiously sanctioned events...
dating from the reign of Tiberius
Tiberius
Tiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
found at Amiternum
Amiternum
Amiternum, a traditional cradle of the Sabines, is an ancient Sabine prefecture in the Abruzzo region of modern Italy at 9 km from L'Aquila. Amiternum was the birthplace of the historian Sallust .It was stormed by the Romans in 293 BC...
(now S. Vittorino
San Vittorino (L'Aquila)
San Vittorino is a frazione in the Province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of Italy....
) in Sabine
Sabine
The Sabines were an Italic tribe that lived in the central Appennines of ancient Italy, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome...
territory.
The Augustan
Augustan literature (ancient Rome)
Augustan literature is the period of Latin literature written during the reign of Augustus , the first Roman emperor. In literary histories of the first part of the 20th century and earlier, Augustan literature was regarded along with that of the Late Republic as constituting the Golden Age of...
grammarian Verrius Flaccus
Verrius Flaccus
Marcus Verrius Flaccus was a Roman grammarian and teacher who flourished under Augustus and Tiberius.-Life:He was a freedman, and his manumitter has been identified with Verrius Flaccus, an authority on pontifical law; but for chronological reasons the name of Veranius Flaccus, a writer on augury,...
connected the Lucaria to the disastrous defeat of the Romans by the Gauls
Gauls
The Gauls were a Celtic people living in Gaul, the region roughly corresponding to what is now France, Belgium, Switzerland and Northern Italy, from the Iron Age through the Roman period. They mostly spoke the Continental Celtic language called Gaulish....
at the Battle of the Allia
Battle of the Allia
The Battle of the Allia was a battle of the first Gallic invasion of Rome. The battle was fought near the Allia river: the defeat of the Roman army opened the route for the Gauls to sack Rome. It was fought in 390/387 BC.-Background:...
, which was fought on July 18. The festival, he says, was celebrated in the large grove between the Via Salaria
Via Salaria
The Via Salaria was an ancient Roman road in Italy.It eventually ran from Rome to Castrum Truentinum on the Adriatic coast - a distance of 242 km. The road also passed through Reate and Asculum...
and the Tiber river, where the Romans who survived the battle had hidden. The Via Salaria crossed the battlefield about 10 miles north of Rome. The lucus thus would have been located on the Pincian Hill
Pincian Hill
The Pincian Hill is a hill in the northeast quadrant of the historical center of Rome. The hill lies to the north of the Quirinal, overlooking the Campus Martius...
, which was later cultivated as gardens and leisure parks
Roman gardens
Roman gardens and ornamental horticulture became highly developed during the history of Roman civilization. The Gardens of Lucullus on the Pincian Hill at the edge of Rome introduced the Persian garden to Europe, around 60 BC...
by Lucullus
Gardens of Lucullus
The Gardens of Lucullus were the setting for an ancient patrician villa on the Pincian Hill on the edge of Rome; they were laid out by Lucius Licinius Lucullus about 60 BCE...
, Pompeius, Sallust
Gardens of Sallust
The Gardens of Sallust were Roman gardens developed by the Roman historian Sallust in the 1st century BC. The landscaped pleasure gardens occupied a large area in the northwestern sector of Rome, in what would become Region VI, between the Pincian and Quirinal hills, near the Via Salaria and later...
and others. This explanatory story has been compared to that of the Poplifugia
Poplifugia
The poplifugia or populifugia , was a festival of ancient Rome celebrated on July 5, according to Varro, in commemoration of the flight of the Romans, when the inhabitants of Ficuleae and Fidenae appeared in arms against them, shortly after the burning of the city by the Gauls ; the traditional...
, which also involved the Gallic sack of Rome. The story may be more aetiological than historical. The Lucaria suggests that grove veneration was a practice which the early Romans had in common with the Gauls.
Like other "fixed holidays" (dies nefasti publici) on the Roman calendar
Roman calendar
The Roman calendar changed its form several times in the time between the founding of Rome and the fall of the Roman Empire. This article generally discusses the early Roman or pre-Julian calendars...
, the Lucaria took place on days of uneven number, with an intervening day that was "non-festive". A mention by Macrobius seems to imply that the festival began at night and continued the following day. Georg Wissowa
Georg Wissowa
Georg Otto August Wissowa was a German classical philologist who was born in Neudorf, near Breslau.Wissowa studied at the University of Breslau, and in 1886 became a professor at the University of Marburg, and in 1895 a professor at the University of Halle.Wissowa was a specialist in the study of...
thought that it may have been connected to the Neptunalia
Neptunalia
The Neptunalia was an obscure archaic two-day festival in honour of Neptune as god of waters, celebrated at Rome in the heat and drought of summer, probably July 23 . It was one of the dies comitiales, when committees of citizens could vote on civil or criminal matters. In the ancient calendar...
on July 23, when leafy huts were built as shelters against the hot summer sun and bulls were sacrificed. Neptune
Neptune (mythology)
Neptune was the god of water and the sea in Roman mythology and religion. He is analogous with, but not identical to, the Greek god Poseidon. In the Greek-influenced tradition, Neptune was the brother of Jupiter and Pluto, each of them presiding over one of the three realms of the universe,...
embodied fresh as well as salt water among the Romans, and the collocation of festivals in July, including also the Furrinalia on the 25th, may express concerns for drought.