{"id":47,"date":"2025-04-17T17:41:01","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T17:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/?post_type=chapter&p=47"},"modified":"2025-05-12T18:18:16","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T18:18:16","slug":"temple-of-magna-mater","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/chapter\/temple-of-magna-mater\/","title":{"rendered":"Temple of Magna Mater on the Palatine"},"content":{"raw":"

Background on Magna Mater in Rome<\/h3>\r\nIn the year 205 BCE, in the middle of the republican era of Rome, the city was at war with Carthage for the second time. This war, the Second Punic War, had begun in 219, and Rome was struggling to defeat the Carthaginian forces led by Hannibal. In response to this crisis--and, according to Livy<\/a>, showers of stones over the city--the Senate decided to consult a record of oracles known as the Sibylline books<\/a>. The books instructed that a goddess known as Cybele or Magna Mater should be brought from Phrygia, a kingdom in Anatolia or modern-day T\u00fcrkiye, and have a temple dedicated to her on the Palatine Hill.\r\n\r\nAs the story goes, the goddess was represented by a rock, possibly a meteorite, that was dark brown or black in color and cone-shaped. In 204 BCE, the rock was carried into the city in a procession and brought temporarily to the Temple of Victory on the Palatine. In 191, construction on Magna Mater's own temple was completed and the goddess was moved there.[footnote]Vitas 2021, p. 16-17[\/footnote]\r\n

The Site<\/h3>\r\nThe Temple to Magna Mater on the Palatine is located just southwest of the Domus Tiberiana (Figs. 1 & 2), one of the lavish imperial palaces that sit atop the hill. The temple had a cella<\/em> and\u00a0pronaos<\/em>, in the typical Roman fashion,[footnote]See this resource<\/a> for more information on Roman temple architecture.[\/footnote] and was a Corinthian hexastyle structure, meaning it had six columns across the front facade.[footnote]Meyer 2022, p. 127[\/footnote]\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_476\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"776\"]\"\"<\/a> Figure 1. A map of the Palatine Hill in Rome, with the Temple to Magna Mater labeled \"16.\" https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Guide_to_Italy_and_Sicily_(1911)_(14579345070).jpg[\/caption]\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_526\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"1024\"]\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Palatin-legende.jpg\"<\/a> Figure 2. A reconstruction of the imperial palaces on the Palatine Hill. The Temple of Magna Mater is visible in the foreground of the structure labeled \"Palais de Tib\u00e8re.\"[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe initial version of the temple stood for eighty years, until the city caught fire in 111 BCE. The temple was rebuilt shortly thereafter in the same place, but on a higher podium and with some additions. As one author describes, \"a large fountain with a basin for ritual ablutions was constructed at the foot of the monumental staircase leading from the large piazza in front of the temple to the temple itself\u2014with the piazza providing space for other Metroac[footnote]\"Metroac\" is a term used to refer to Magna Mater or Cybele and her cult, including both priests and rituals. A temple or sanctuary space dedicated to the deity is often referred to as a \"metroon\" (Greek) or \"maetreum\" (Latin). All three terms are also sometimes used in association with mother goddesses more generally, or in reference to goddesses like Hera\/Juno or Demeter\/Ceres.[\/footnote] rituals.\u201d[footnote]Latham 2012, p. 94[\/footnote] At the beginning of the next century, the temple burned a second time and was rebuilt by Augustus. This renovation, in 3 CE, was more lavish than earlier versions. Augustus also removed the basin.[footnote]Vitas 2021, p. 17[\/footnote] Figure 3 is a timeline of Magna Mater's presence and the development of her temple in Rome.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_482\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"518\"]\"\" Figure 3. A timeline of Magna Mater's arrival to the city and the various iterations of her temple. Created by author.[\/caption]\r\n\r\nAccurate excavation records for the temple are difficult to find, but it appears that the first official digs occurred in the 1860's. The first excavators were C. L. Visconti and R. Lanciani.[footnote]The Urban Legacy of Ancient Rome<\/em>, Stanford University Libraries[\/footnote] Later, in 1950, the site was excavated further, with particular focus on the area within the\u00a0cella<\/em> walls. This dig produced a small collection of terracotta votives (Fig. 4), which have been dated to between 191 and 111 BCE, during the first iteration of the temple.[footnote]Meyer 2022, p. 127[\/footnote] Scholars[footnote]Meyer 2022, p. 127[\/footnote] have noted that while a few of the votives depict Magna Mater herself or animal sacrifices like oxen and fowl, the vast majority of the offerings are effigies of Attis<\/a>, another deity associated closely with Magna Mater and usually described as her lover.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_488\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"1024\"]\"\"<\/a> Figure 4. A collection of clay and terracotta objects identified as votives offered at the Temple of Magna Mater sometime in the first century after initial construction. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Depositi_votivi_del_tempio_della_magna_mater,_210-100_ac_ca.jpg[\/caption]\r\n

Who is Magna Mater?<\/h3>\r\nThe goddess's origins in Phrygia are of great importance to her reception in Rome. The Romans saw themselves as descendants of the kingdom of Troy in Anatolia, so the Anatolian goddess became the ancestral mother of Rome.[footnote]Vitas 2021, p. 17[\/footnote] Some of Magna Mater's epithets demonstrate this connection to Troy. For example, she is often called \"Idaean\" or the \"Idaean Mother\" for Mt. Ida in Troy. In fact, her official title upon arriving in Rome in 204 BCE was Mater Deum Magna Idaea<\/em>, meaning \"Great Idaean Mother of the Gods.\"[footnote]Vitas 2021, p. 17[\/footnote]\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_520\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"236\"]\"\"<\/a> Figure 5. A marble statue of Magna Mater seated, missing her head and arms. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Magna_mater,_150_dc_ca._da_orig._pergameneo_del_II_secolo_ac.,_dal_tempio_della_magna_mater.jpg[\/caption]\r\n\r\nIn line with these notions, Magna Mater was also a goddess of fertility, agriculture, and motherhood.[footnote]Vitas 2021[\/footnote] She is associated with pastoral symbols such as wheat and mountains, and she is often identified with other deities more prominent in the Roman pantheon, like Ceres (Demeter to the Greeks[footnote]Magna Mater or Cybele was also worshipped in the Greek world, possibly starting as early as the 6th century BCE.[\/footnote]), Rhea, and Gaia.[footnote]Vitas 2021, p. 14[\/footnote] She is also a protector goddess for Rome, associated with the city walls and the sacred boundary (called the\u00a0pomerium<\/em>) that encircled the city.[footnote]Meyer 2022, p. 127[\/footnote] She is often depicted with a crown in the shape of walls or turrets (Fig. 6).\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_521\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"488\"]\"\"<\/a> Figure 6. A broze statue of Magna Mater, seated, wearing a crown in the shape of the city's walls. She also holds a libation bowl and a large drum, and originally appeared sitting on a chariot pulled by lions. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bronze_statuette_of_Cybele.jpg[\/caption]\r\n\r\nMagna Mater was celebrated in Rome with a festival called the Megalensia<\/em>,[footnote]Littlewood 1981[\/footnote] which like took place from April 4th to April 10th each year. The festival was intended to commemorate the goddess's arrival in the city and celebrate the prosperity she brought to Rome. Sources on the exact rites and practices undertaken for the festival are inconsistent, but there are a few activities that appear consistently. The festival included a procession through the city--perhaps in an attempt to recreate the procession of Magna Mater's initial arrival to the Palatine--culminating in the ritual bathing of the goddess's cult statue (or her cone-shaped meteorite).[footnote]Ibid.[\/footnote] The\u00a0Megalensia<\/em> also involved a banquet, the sacrifice of a heifer, circus games such as chariot racing, and theatrical performances. The festival was also the only time during which Magna Mater's temple was open for regular worshippers to bring sacrifices and votive offerings.\r\n

The\u00a0Galli<\/em><\/h3>\r\nPerhaps the aspect of Magna Mater's cult in Rome that has most captured the attention of scholars today is not the goddess herself but her priests, known as\u00a0galli <\/em>(Fig. 7). Neither Roman citizens nor slaves were allowed to become\u00a0galli<\/em>; only foreigners were permitted to do so.[footnote]Meyer 2022, p. 114[\/footnote] This is because the gall<\/em>i<\/em> did not conform to traditional Roman gender roles or social norms. They were traditionally castrated males, a characteristic heavily emphasized by Roman writers and modern scholars alike.[footnote]Latham 2012[\/footnote] Our Roman authors approach the galli<\/em> with a sort of condescending disgust but cautious fascination, and literary sources often refer to them as half-men or as some third gender. The Romans seem to have used either feminine or a combination of masculine and feminine pronouns to refer to the\u00a0galli.[footnote]Ibid.[\/footnote]<\/em>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_533\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"192\"]\"\"<\/a> Figure 7. A statue of a gallus<\/em> priest. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Statue_of_Gallus_priest.jpg[\/caption]\r\n\r\nJust as Roman worshippers could only enter the Palatine temple during the Megalensia<\/em>, the galli\u00a0<\/em>were only permitted to\u00a0leave<\/em> the temple complex during the few days out of the year that made up the festival.[footnote]Littlewood 1981[\/footnote] They performed the procession and ritual bathing of the goddess that occurred during the festivities, and also engaged in ritual alms-begging during the celebration. Roman authors report that the galli<\/em> had a distinct appearance, wearing feminine garments and Phrygian caps or crowns. More striking, the priests are also said to have depilated their legs, curled their hair, and covered themselves in perfumed oils.[footnote]Latham 2012; 2014[\/footnote]\r\n

\u201cDon\u2019t torture your hair, though, with curling-irons: don\u2019t pumice your legs into smoothness. Leave that to the Mother Cybele\u2019s votaries, ululating in chorus with their Phrygian modes. Real men shouldn\u2019t primp their good looks,\u201d<\/strong> Ovid, Ars Amatoria[footnote]As quoted in Latham 2012, p. 84[\/footnote]<\/em><\/h4>\r\n \r\n

Conclusion<\/h3>\r\nThe cult of Magna Mater and the\u00a0galli<\/em> are a fascinating case study in Roman religion because they are not typically \"Roman.\" Magna Mater provides a window into the ways in which Rome was a diverse, multicultural city, especially when it comes to religious practice. Though Magna Mater and her cult are unique in many ways, this goddess is merely one example of the Roman practice of importing and syncretizing foreign deities into the official religion of the state, crafting a dynamic and colorful pantheon. Magna Mater and the diversity of Roman religion can serve as a reminder for us that Rome was not a monolith.\r\n\r\n \r\n

Bibliography<\/h3>\r\nBoin, Douglas. \u201cA LATE ANTIQUE STATUARY COLLECTION AT OSTIA\u2019S SANCTUARY OF MAGNA MATER: A CASE-STUDY IN LATE ROMAN RELIGION AND TRADITION.\u201d Papers of the British School at Rome 81 (2013): 247\u201377. http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/42706323<\/a>.\r\n\r\nBurton, Paul J. \u201cThe Summoning of the Magna Mater to Rome (205 B.C.).\u201d Historia: Zeitschrift F\u00fcr Alte Geschichte 45, no. 1 (1996): 36\u201363. http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/4436406<\/a>.\r\n\r\nElder, Olivia. \u201cPopulation, Migration and Language in the City of Rome.\u201d Chapter. In Migration, Mobility and Language Contact in and around the Ancient Mediterranean, edited by James Clackson, Patrick James, Katherine McDonald, Livia Tagliapietra, and Nicholas Zair, 268\u201395. Cambridge Classical Studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020.\r\n\r\nLatham, Jacob. \u201c\u2018Fabulous Clap-Trap\u2019: Roman Masculinity, the Cult of Magna Mater, and Literary Constructions of the Galli at Rome from the Late Republic to Late Antiquity.\u201d The Journal of Religion 92, no. 1 (2012): 84\u2013122. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1086\/662205<\/a>.\r\n\r\nLatham, Jacob. \u201cROMAN RHETORIC, METROAC REPRESENTATION: TEXTS, ARTIFACTS, AND THE CULT OF MAGNA MATER IN ROME AND OSTIA.\u201d Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome 59\/60 (2014): 51\u201380. http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/44981972<\/a>.\r\n\r\nLittlewood, R. J. \u201cPoetic Artistry and Dynastic Politics: Ovid at the Ludi Megalenses (Fasti 4. 179-372).\u201d The Classical Quarterly 31, no. 2 (1981): 381\u201395. http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/638544<\/a>.\r\n\r\nLivy, The History of Rome, trans. Rev. Canon Roberts, (New York, NY: E. P. Dutton and Co., 1912).\r\n\r\nMeyer, John Clifford. \"Arcessite divum matrem: The homecoming of the Great Mother to Rome.\" Acta Classica 65 (2022): 113-140. https:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1353\/acl.2022.0006<\/a>.\r\n\r\nRoller, Lynn E. 1999. In Search of God the Mother\u202f: The Cult of Anatolian Cybele. Berkeley, Calif: University of California Press. https:\/\/research.ebsco.com\/linkprocessor\/plink?id=89bdc86a-a938-3b81-9874-09071ed55a37<\/a>.\r\n\r\nSatterfield, Susan. \u201cIntention and Exoticism in Magna Mater\u2019s Introduction into Rome.\u201d Latomus 71, no. 2 (2012): 373\u201391. http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/41547220<\/a>.\r\n\r\nStanford University Libraries. \"The Urban Legacy of Ancient Rome: Photographs from the Ernest Nash Fototeca Unione Collection.\" Accessed May 12, 2025. https:\/\/exhibits.stanford.edu\/nash\/feature\/m<\/a>.\r\n\r\nUniversity of Chicago. \"Temple Architecture.\" Accessed May 12, 2025. https:\/\/penelope.uchicago.edu\/encyclopaedia_romana\/architecture\/templearchitecture.html<\/a>.\r\n\r\nVergil, Aeneid, trans. Theodore C. Williams, (Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1910).\r\n\r\nVitas, Nade\u017eda Gavrilovi\u0107. \u201cMagna Mater.\u201d In Ex Asia et Syria: Oriental Religions in the Roman Central Balkans, 13\u201348. Archaeopress, 2021. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.2307\/j.ctv1gt94hj.9<\/a>.\r\n\r\nWallace-Hadrill, Andrew. \u201cImperial Rome: A City of Immigrants?\u201d 2017. Acta Ad Archaeologiam Et Artium Historiam Pertinentia 29 (15 N.S.): 53-72. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.5617\/acta.6076<\/a>.\r\n\r\nWikimedia Commons contributors. \"File:Bronze statuette of Cybele.jpg,\" <\/span>Wikimedia Commons. <\/i>Accessed May 12, 2025.\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=File:Bronze_statuette_of_Cybele.jpg&oldid=835052120<\/a>.<\/span>\r\n\r\nWikimedia Commons contributors. \"File:Depositi votivi del tempio della magna mater, 210-100 ac ca.jpg,\" <\/span>Wikimedia Commons. <\/i>Accessed May 12, 2025. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=File:Depositi_votivi_del_tempio_della_magna_mater,_210-100_ac_ca.jpg&oldid=923306543<\/a>.<\/span>\r\n\r\nWikimedia Commons contributors. \"File:Guide to Italy and Sicily (1911) (14579345070).jpg,\" <\/span>Wikimedia<\/i> Commons<\/em>. Accessed May 12, 2025. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=File:Guide_to_Italy_and_Sicily_(1911)_(14579345070).jpg&oldid=1010313941<\/a>.\r\n\r\nWikimedia Commons contributors. \"File:Magna mater, 150 dc ca. da orig. pergameneo del II secolo ac., dal tempio della magna mater.jpg,\" <\/span>Wikimedia Commons. <\/i>Accessed May 12, 2025.\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=File:Magna_mater,_150_dc_ca._da_orig._pergameneo_del_II_secolo_ac.,_dal_tempio_della_magna_mater.jpg&oldid=737416272<\/a>.<\/span>\r\n\r\nWikimedia Commons contributors. \"File:Palatin-legende.jpg,\" <\/span>Wikimedia Commons. <\/i>Accessed May 12, 2025.\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=File:Palatin-legende.jpg&oldid=1010328844<\/a>.<\/span>\r\n\r\nWikimedia Commons contributors. \"File:Statue of Gallus priest.jpg,\" <\/span>Wikimedia Commons. <\/i>Accessed May 12, 2025.\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=File:Statue_of_Gallus_priest.jpg&oldid=511036995<\/a>.<\/span>\r\n\r\nWiseman, T. P. \"Cybele and Attis.\" Accessed May 12, 2025. https:\/\/www.oxfordreference.com\/display\/10.1093\/acref\/9780195170726.001.0001\/acref-9780195170726-e-329#<\/a>. Schultz, Celia E. \"Sibyls and the Sibylline Books<\/span>.\" Accessed May 12, 2025. https:\/\/www.oxfordreference.com\/display\/10.1093\/acref\/9780195170726.001.0001\/acref-9780195170726-e-1162?rskey=gCDbBd&result=2<\/a>.","rendered":"

Background on Magna Mater in Rome<\/h3>\n

In the year 205 BCE, in the middle of the republican era of Rome, the city was at war with Carthage for the second time. This war, the Second Punic War, had begun in 219, and Rome was struggling to defeat the Carthaginian forces led by Hannibal. In response to this crisis–and, according to Livy<\/a>, showers of stones over the city–the Senate decided to consult a record of oracles known as the Sibylline books<\/a>. The books instructed that a goddess known as Cybele or Magna Mater should be brought from Phrygia, a kingdom in Anatolia or modern-day T\u00fcrkiye, and have a temple dedicated to her on the Palatine Hill.<\/p>\n

As the story goes, the goddess was represented by a rock, possibly a meteorite, that was dark brown or black in color and cone-shaped. In 204 BCE, the rock was carried into the city in a procession and brought temporarily to the Temple of Victory on the Palatine. In 191, construction on Magna Mater’s own temple was completed and the goddess was moved there.[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

The Site<\/h3>\n

The Temple to Magna Mater on the Palatine is located just southwest of the Domus Tiberiana (Figs. 1 & 2), one of the lavish imperial palaces that sit atop the hill. The temple had a cella<\/em> and\u00a0pronaos<\/em>, in the typical Roman fashion,[2]<\/sup><\/a> and was a Corinthian hexastyle structure, meaning it had six columns across the front facade.[3]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 1. A map of the Palatine Hill in Rome, with the Temple to Magna Mater labeled “16.” https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Guide_to_Italy_and_Sicily_(1911)_(14579345070).jpg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Palatin-legende.jpg\"<\/a>
Figure 2. A reconstruction of the imperial palaces on the Palatine Hill. The Temple of Magna Mater is visible in the foreground of the structure labeled “Palais de Tib\u00e8re.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The initial version of the temple stood for eighty years, until the city caught fire in 111 BCE. The temple was rebuilt shortly thereafter in the same place, but on a higher podium and with some additions. As one author describes, “a large fountain with a basin for ritual ablutions was constructed at the foot of the monumental staircase leading from the large piazza in front of the temple to the temple itself\u2014with the piazza providing space for other Metroac[4]<\/sup><\/a> rituals.\u201d[5]<\/sup><\/a> At the beginning of the next century, the temple burned a second time and was rebuilt by Augustus. This renovation, in 3 CE, was more lavish than earlier versions. Augustus also removed the basin.[6]<\/sup><\/a> Figure 3 is a timeline of Magna Mater’s presence and the development of her temple in Rome.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"
Figure 3. A timeline of Magna Mater’s arrival to the city and the various iterations of her temple. Created by author.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Accurate excavation records for the temple are difficult to find, but it appears that the first official digs occurred in the 1860’s. The first excavators were C. L. Visconti and R. Lanciani.[7]<\/sup><\/a> Later, in 1950, the site was excavated further, with particular focus on the area within the\u00a0cella<\/em> walls. This dig produced a small collection of terracotta votives (Fig. 4), which have been dated to between 191 and 111 BCE, during the first iteration of the temple.[8]<\/sup><\/a> Scholars[9]<\/sup><\/a> have noted that while a few of the votives depict Magna Mater herself or animal sacrifices like oxen and fowl, the vast majority of the offerings are effigies of Attis<\/a>, another deity associated closely with Magna Mater and usually described as her lover.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 4. A collection of clay and terracotta objects identified as votives offered at the Temple of Magna Mater sometime in the first century after initial construction. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Depositi_votivi_del_tempio_della_magna_mater,_210-100_ac_ca.jpg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Who is Magna Mater?<\/h3>\n

The goddess’s origins in Phrygia are of great importance to her reception in Rome. The Romans saw themselves as descendants of the kingdom of Troy in Anatolia, so the Anatolian goddess became the ancestral mother of Rome.[10]<\/sup><\/a> Some of Magna Mater’s epithets demonstrate this connection to Troy. For example, she is often called “Idaean” or the “Idaean Mother” for Mt. Ida in Troy. In fact, her official title upon arriving in Rome in 204 BCE was Mater Deum Magna Idaea<\/em>, meaning “Great Idaean Mother of the Gods.”[11]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 5. A marble statue of Magna Mater seated, missing her head and arms. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Magna_mater,_150_dc_ca._da_orig._pergameneo_del_II_secolo_ac.,_dal_tempio_della_magna_mater.jpg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In line with these notions, Magna Mater was also a goddess of fertility, agriculture, and motherhood.[12]<\/sup><\/a> She is associated with pastoral symbols such as wheat and mountains, and she is often identified with other deities more prominent in the Roman pantheon, like Ceres (Demeter to the Greeks[13]<\/sup><\/a>), Rhea, and Gaia.[14]<\/sup><\/a> She is also a protector goddess for Rome, associated with the city walls and the sacred boundary (called the\u00a0pomerium<\/em>) that encircled the city.[15]<\/sup><\/a> She is often depicted with a crown in the shape of walls or turrets (Fig. 6).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 6. A broze statue of Magna Mater, seated, wearing a crown in the shape of the city’s walls. She also holds a libation bowl and a large drum, and originally appeared sitting on a chariot pulled by lions. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Bronze_statuette_of_Cybele.jpg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Magna Mater was celebrated in Rome with a festival called the Megalensia<\/em>,[16]<\/sup><\/a> which like took place from April 4th to April 10th each year. The festival was intended to commemorate the goddess’s arrival in the city and celebrate the prosperity she brought to Rome. Sources on the exact rites and practices undertaken for the festival are inconsistent, but there are a few activities that appear consistently. The festival included a procession through the city–perhaps in an attempt to recreate the procession of Magna Mater’s initial arrival to the Palatine–culminating in the ritual bathing of the goddess’s cult statue (or her cone-shaped meteorite).[17]<\/sup><\/a> The\u00a0Megalensia<\/em> also involved a banquet, the sacrifice of a heifer, circus games such as chariot racing, and theatrical performances. The festival was also the only time during which Magna Mater’s temple was open for regular worshippers to bring sacrifices and votive offerings.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Galli<\/em><\/h3>\n

Perhaps the aspect of Magna Mater’s cult in Rome that has most captured the attention of scholars today is not the goddess herself but her priests, known as\u00a0galli <\/em>(Fig. 7). Neither Roman citizens nor slaves were allowed to become\u00a0galli<\/em>; only foreigners were permitted to do so.[18]<\/sup><\/a> This is because the gall<\/em>i<\/em> did not conform to traditional Roman gender roles or social norms. They were traditionally castrated males, a characteristic heavily emphasized by Roman writers and modern scholars alike.[19]<\/sup><\/a> Our Roman authors approach the galli<\/em> with a sort of condescending disgust but cautious fascination, and literary sources often refer to them as half-men or as some third gender. The Romans seem to have used either feminine or a combination of masculine and feminine pronouns to refer to the\u00a0galli.[20]<\/sup><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 7. A statue of a gallus<\/em> priest. https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Statue_of_Gallus_priest.jpg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Just as Roman worshippers could only enter the Palatine temple during the Megalensia<\/em>, the galli\u00a0<\/em>were only permitted to\u00a0leave<\/em> the temple complex during the few days out of the year that made up the festival.[21]<\/sup><\/a> They performed the procession and ritual bathing of the goddess that occurred during the festivities, and also engaged in ritual alms-begging during the celebration. Roman authors report that the galli<\/em> had a distinct appearance, wearing feminine garments and Phrygian caps or crowns. More striking, the priests are also said to have depilated their legs, curled their hair, and covered themselves in perfumed oils.[22]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t torture your hair, though, with curling-irons: don\u2019t pumice your legs into smoothness. Leave that to the Mother Cybele\u2019s votaries, ululating in chorus with their Phrygian modes. Real men shouldn\u2019t primp their good looks,\u201d<\/strong> Ovid, Ars Amatoria[23]<\/sup><\/a><\/em><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h3>\n

The cult of Magna Mater and the\u00a0galli<\/em> are a fascinating case study in Roman religion because they are not typically “Roman.” Magna Mater provides a window into the ways in which Rome was a diverse, multicultural city, especially when it comes to religious practice. Though Magna Mater and her cult are unique in many ways, this goddess is merely one example of the Roman practice of importing and syncretizing foreign deities into the official religion of the state, crafting a dynamic and colorful pantheon. Magna Mater and the diversity of Roman religion can serve as a reminder for us that Rome was not a monolith.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Bibliography<\/h3>\n

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  1. Vitas 2021, p. 16-17 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  2. See this resource<\/a> for more information on Roman temple architecture. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  3. Meyer 2022, p. 127 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  4. \"Metroac\" is a term used to refer to Magna Mater or Cybele and her cult, including both priests and rituals. A temple or sanctuary space dedicated to the deity is often referred to as a \"metroon\" (Greek) or \"maetreum\" (Latin). All three terms are also sometimes used in association with mother goddesses more generally, or in reference to goddesses like Hera\/Juno or Demeter\/Ceres. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  5. Latham 2012, p. 94 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  6. Vitas 2021, p. 17 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  7. The Urban Legacy of Ancient Rome<\/em>, Stanford University Libraries ↵<\/a><\/li>
  8. Meyer 2022, p. 127 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  9. Meyer 2022, p. 127 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  10. Vitas 2021, p. 17 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  11. Vitas 2021, p. 17 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  12. Vitas 2021 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  13. Magna Mater or Cybele was also worshipped in the Greek world, possibly starting as early as the 6th century BCE. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  14. Vitas 2021, p. 14 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  15. Meyer 2022, p. 127 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  16. Littlewood 1981 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  17. Ibid. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  18. Meyer 2022, p. 114 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  19. Latham 2012 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  20. Ibid. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  21. Littlewood 1981 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  22. Latham 2012; 2014 ↵<\/a><\/li>
  23. As quoted in Latham 2012, p. 84 ↵<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":224,"menu_order":14,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":["lrosan"],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[69],"license":[],"class_list":["post-47","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","contributor-lrosan"],"part":77,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/47","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/224"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/47\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":754,"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/47\/revisions\/754"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/77"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/47\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=47"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=47"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openpress.digital.conncoll.edu\/religionsofgreeceandromesitereports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=47"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}