Dea Dia

Dea Dia was in the Roman Empire as the goddess of growth and was of the Fratres Arvales ( " Arvalbrüder " ) worshiped.

Especially in the 19th century Dea ​​Dia was with Ceres (sometimes Tellus, Ops or Acca Larentia, sometimes even Diana and lifting ) equated. These identifications were rejected today and the Dea Dia regarded as a local deity.

Festival

The three-day festival of the Dea Dia was a time moveable feast. It was mostly in May, rarely beginning of June. The cult goes back to the Roman and early period was fundamentally reformed under Augustus. Her temple, the lucus, was outside of Rome in a grove on the Via Campana on the right-hand bank of the Tiber between the fifth and sixth milestone. The use of iron was prohibited in the acts of worship. In these togas were worn with purple border.

The first day of the three day festival was the preparation, until the second day the actual rites were performed. The Executive Board of Arvalbrüder sacrificed without the other members, two piglets and a white cow. Following came the conducted with all members of the main victims of a fat sheep. This was followed by ceremonies with incense and wine victims, touching consecrated ears, distributing lorbeerbekränztem bread and the casting down of pots from the temple entrance. Then followed a dance to an ancient song whose meaning and content were incomprehensible even in the Republican period. Following was followed by a meal, wagon and horse racing in the grove 's Circus, the hospitality of the members in the house of the Board as well as a sacrificial meal at the Board and request a formula for the emperor on the third day.

Tradition

Interesting to Dea Dia is that it is never mentioned in ancient Roman literature except for one exception. Only Varro public victims of Arvalbrüder be mentioned.

However, more details than the other deity known about the cult of Dea Dia. This information comes from the archives of the priesthood of the Arvalbrüder, recorded on tablets that were found in the temple of the Dea Dia Stylobates 1570. Other discoveries followed in 1699, 1866 and during scheduled excavations in 1871. Added to this were stray finds from the Roman city ( Esquiline, Aventine, Vatican). The results were published in chronological form of Wilhelm Henzen 1874.