Apex (headdress)

The apex (plural apices ) was a part of the ritual headgear of flamens, the priest of the Roman state cult. It is an essay, which was worn over the galerus, the tight-fitting leather cap.

The apex consisted of a carved olive tree tip ( virgula oleagina ). On top of that sometimes wore a button, a woolen flake ( hence the name virga lanata, such as " wollumwickelter branch " ) was sitting. The tip is eponymous, because apex in Latin means " peak ". At the mature -like bead, with which he sat up on the galerus, was a woolen band ( vitta " fillet ").

The Flemings Dialis it was not permitted to appear without Apex under the open sky (sub Iove ). If the other flamens published without Apex, so they wore at least the vitta as a head bandage. The wool for vitta and virga had from the Flaminica, wife of the Flemings, have been spun.

The relief on the west side of the Ara Pacis of Augustus can be seen as participants of the procession four flamens with Apex. These are regarded as the three flamens maiores ( Flemish Dialis, Flamen Martialis Flamen Quirinalis ) and the Flemish Divi Julii, the priest of the deified Julius Caesar Gaius act. After the Ryberg flamens maiores are recognizable by the long head of the apex, the flamens minores wore instead of the bar just a button on the galerus.

The designation Apex carried over soon to the entire headdress consisting of galerus and the actual apex.