4/1/2023 0 Comments Saturnalia pagan![]() ![]() In December, however, the Temple of Saturn became a symbol of revelry and role reversal. Unlike Christian churches, which are open to everyone, the secrets of the Roman temples remained behind closed doors. Like all pagan temples in Ancient Rome, the interior of the temple was inaccessible to the general public, so ordinary Romans would not have been able to see the remarkable hollow statue of Saturn, which was filled with olive oil. This ancient Roman festival was celebrated from the 17th to the 23rd of December, beginning with a sacrifice in front of the Temple of Saturn in the Forum. It’s particularly impressive at night, and at certain angles it seems almost as tall as the Colosseum itself.īut before tinsel and fairy lights, and before Christ, there was Saturnalia. After your Colosseum group tour, have a look at the Christmas tree when it’s all lit up. Via del Corso is bright with Christmas lights, while Piazza Venezia and the Colosseum try to out-do each other with their gigantic Christmas trees. That is, perhaps, a toga too far, however.In the middle of December the streets of Rome’s centro storico are swarming with Christmas shoppers. It is rather endearing to think of the Ancient Romans getting excited about Saturnalia and becoming kind and generous, as people do today – no doubt they also ate and drank too much, had the occasional family argument and perhaps made a new year resolution or two, as we do today.Īnd at least for a day or two, slaves also enjoyed themselves – and even got to wear their employers’ clothing in a master-servant swap. There was no bloodletting at the Colosseum during Saturnaliaīut Saturnalia was also a time of peace – no warmongering took place during the festival, echoing the Christian message of “Peace on Earth” at Christmas. Not everyone agrees that there is a direct link between Saturnalia and Christmas – it is perhaps the occurrence of the harvest and the resultant feasting in winter that might have brought about the coincidence with Christ’s supposed birth date of 25 December. If you have not taken down your Christmas decorations by 6 January, it is considered unlucky. Trajan’s Market, Forum – shopping for Saturnalia provisionsĬhristian beliefs slowly took hold across the Roman Empire – and Saturnalia’s date was set for 6 January, which is considered the last day of Christmas and also marks the Feast of Kings in Spain. ![]() With Constantine, Christians were allowed to practise their religion, instead of being thrown into the Colosseum to be devoured by hungry lions. It was the Emperor Constantine who first favoured Christianity and the idea of one God instead of lots of different pagan gods, as the Romans traditionally believed in. ![]() Basilica of Constantine and Maxentius, Forum, Rome The festival of Saturnalia was an agricultural celebration, which followed the autumn harvest – and which Romans celebrated with feasts. Wealthy Romans treated their servants – and might also pay their rent to mark Saturnalia if they could not afford to. Romans suddenly dug deep into their pockets at Saturnalia, giving small gifts to each other and getting togged up in their best clothes to mark the festival. Saturnalia was a pagan festival – but has striking similarities to the Christian festival of Christmas, which celebrates the birth of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The month of December in Ancient Rome was looked forward to as much as it it today because of the Roman festival of Saturnalia on or around 25 December. ![]()
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