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List of contents
1. Introduction
The Task
The Evidence
The Inscription
Severan Literature
Numismatic Evidence
Severus, the Ludi and the Studies
The Ludi Saeculares
The Severan period
2. From the Antonine Era to the Severan Dynasty
3. Organising the Ludi Saeculares
Towards the New Era
Funding the Festivals
Purifying the Holy Grounds
4. The Opening Night and Day
The Rituals of the First Night
A Quest for a Happy Destiny
The Witness of the Vestals
Pacifying the Gods
Rites of the Opening Day: The God and his Servant
The Father(s) of Rome
Divine Severus?
5. Day Two: Women take the Stage
The Second Night: A Prelude?
The Second Day: Celebrating Juno
Mother(s) of the Golden Age
Imperial Concordia
The Vestals stand Still
Honouring the New Age
6. The Third Night and Day: The Empire of the Sun and the Moon
A Night of Abundance
The Goddess of Cultivation
Food and Imperial Paternalism
Guardians of Storage
The Third Day: Final Sacrifices
Apollo, the God of many Roles
Diana, the Goddess of many Roles
Written in the Stars
7. Closing Acts: The Carmen Saeculare and the Trojan Games
A Hymn for the Golden Age
The Severan Poem and its Performers
The New Leaders of the Commonwealth
Cities, Shores, and Golden Fields
Blessings for the Army
The Trojan Games
8. Conclusion
Appendix 1: The Inscription commemorating Septimius Severus’ Ludi Saeculares
Appendix 2: Records of the Severan Ludi Saeculares
Appendix 3: The Rituals of the Ludi Saeculares of CE 204
Appendix 4: The History of the Ludi Saeculares
About the author
Jussi Rantala is a researcher at the University of Tampere, Finland. His main research interests include questions of religion, ritual, representation, identity and historiography in the Roman Empire.
Summary
Septimius Severus emerged victorious from the civil war of AD 193; he was not part of the traditional political elite, but instead a military commander from Africa, with a Syrian princess as his wife. To garner popular support and to legitimise his power Severus conducted an intensive propaganda campaign. This is the first monograph to examine t
