Archaeological Museum of Bologna

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Via dell'Archiginnasio 2 - 40124 Bologna
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Collections / Sections / Roman collection

Life in the domus: religion

Religion is one of the most complex and problematic aspects of Roman civilisation: it included a wide-ranging series of rites, cults and behaviours that differed according to public or private practice and it was particularly receptive to extremely diverse domestic, even foreign influences. The principal public divinities - the great Olympic gods, in large part derived from the Greek world - the semi-gods, heroes, mythological beings and abstract or undefined entities, formed the Roman Pantheon. Inside the domus, the paterfamilias carried out the function of priest and depository of the religious tradition: his job was to offer sacrifices to the gods who protected the house. In the form of small bronze statues, they were kept in the lararium, a small shrine, usually located in the atrium. It was called this because it contained, above all, the Lari, gods who watched over the house and its occupants. Gods such as Mercury, auspicious for the family economy, Diana, Venus or Hercules, as well as personifications such as Fortune and Abundance, were also included. Magic and superstition were fundamental to the Roman religion, chiefly in the private sphere. Amulets of different types abounded. The most diffused of these was the phallic amulet, as it was considered to be an extremely powerful propitiatory element; it was often tied to bells, whose sound was thought to defend from and ward off evil. Another important part of the religion were the “salutary cults”, in which the faithful established a strict personal dialogue with the divinity to ask for recovery from a disease or protection of health. They took terracotta anatomic votive offerings to the sanctuary. These represented the part of the body to be or that had been healed.

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The Lares are among the oldest Roman gods, of Etruscan origin, originally responsibles to ensure the agricultural property: they were worshiped outdoors, especially at the crossroads (Lares compitales). Later, their cult spread and they became guardians of the roadways, the seaways, the army and the souls of childrens dead before the 40th day of life. The Lares became also household deities, watching over the house and its occupants and providing the most genuine example of popular religiosity (Lares Familiares). In every Roman house the lararium (a small shrine found ) contained the lares.


Lar
This lar wears a short belted tunic, a cloak draped over one shoulder and caught in the belt, and open-toed boots. The ribbons of a wreath tied around his head fall forward over his shoulders. Originally the youth carried objects in his hands, probably a patera, or offering dish, and a cornucopia, a symbol of prosperity and abundance.

Provenance: Palagi Collection
Datation: 1 century BC
Material: bronze
Dimensions: h cm 12,2
Inventory #: Rom 1058

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Exhibition rooms | Room IX - Roman Collection