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The Secular Games were primarily a military celebration designed to honor victorious Roman generals.
Answer: False
The primary purpose of the Secular Games was to mark the conclusion of various eras (*saecula*) and usher in new ones, rather than being a military celebration.
The primary purpose of the Secular Games was to mark the conclusion of various eras, called *saecula*, and to usher in the beginning of new ones.
Answer: True
The *Ludi Saeculares* were indeed religious celebrations intended to signify the end of one *saeculum* and the commencement of another, involving a range of public rituals.
In the context of the Secular Games, a *saeculum* was defined by the Romans as a fixed period of exactly 50 years.
Answer: False
A *saeculum* was defined as the longest possible span of human life, typically 100 or 110 years, not a fixed 50-year period.
The Roman definition of a *saeculum* for the Secular Games was the longest possible span of human life, typically 100 or 110 years.
Answer: True
The concept of a *saeculum* was intrinsically linked to the maximum human lifespan, serving as a generational marker for the Games.
The mythological origin of the Secular Games involves a Sabine man named Valesius whose children were cured by water from the Tiber, leading to sacrifices to underworld deities.
Answer: True
The mythological account details Valesius's children's miraculous cure and the subsequent divine instruction to sacrifice to Dis Pater and Proserpina, establishing the Tarentine Games.
According to Roman mythology, the Secular Games were initially known as the Olympic Games.
Answer: False
The mythological origin identifies the initial name of the Secular Games as the Tarentine Games (*Ludi Tarentini*), not the Olympic Games.
The Tarentine Games' mythological origin involved sacrifices primarily to Jupiter and Juno.
Answer: False
The mythological origin of the Tarentine Games specifies sacrifices to Dis Pater and Proserpina, deities of the underworld, not Jupiter and Juno.
The initial sacrifice site for the Tarentine Games, as described in the mythological account, was the Roman Forum.
Answer: False
The mythological account places the initial sacrifice site for the Tarentine Games on the Campus Martius, at a location known as Tarentum, where an altar to underworld deities was discovered.
What was the primary purpose of the Secular Games in ancient Rome?
Answer: To mark the conclusion of various eras and usher in new ones.
The *Ludi Saeculares* were fundamentally religious festivals designed to signify the passage of *saecula* and the inauguration of new periods for the Roman state.
How did the Romans define a *saeculum* in the context of the Secular Games?
Answer: The longest possible span of human life, typically 100 or 110 years.
The Roman concept of a *saeculum* for the Games was tied to the maximum human lifespan, symbolizing a complete cycle of generations.
According to Roman mythology, who was the Sabine man whose children's miraculous cure led to the origin of the Tarentine Games?
Answer: Valesius
The mythological origin story of the Tarentine Games centers on Valesius, whose children's cure prompted the establishment of the sacrifices.
Which deities were initially associated with the Tarentine Games in the mythological origin story?
Answer: Dis Pater and Proserpina
The Tarentine Games, in their mythological inception, were dedicated to Dis Pater and Proserpina, the Roman deities of the underworld.
Where was the initial sacrifice site for the Tarentine Games, according to the mythological account?
Answer: The Campus Martius
The mythological narrative specifies the Campus Martius, at a location called Tarentum, as the site where Valesius was instructed to perform the initial sacrifices.
Celebrations of the Secular Games during the Roman Republic are extensively documented, with clear records from 509 BC.
Answer: False
Documentation for Republican Secular Games is poor, with modern scholars debating the historicity of early celebrations and generally considering 249 BC as the first clearly attested instance, not 509 BC.
The first well-attested Republican Secular Games in 249 BC were initiated during a period of peace and prosperity.
Answer: False
The first well-attested Republican Secular Games in 249 BC occurred amidst the First Punic War, a period of significant conflict, not peace.
Republican Secular Games involved day-time sacrifices to Olympian deities on the Capitoline Hill.
Answer: False
Republican Secular Games featured nocturnal sacrifices at the Tarentum on the Campus Martius, specifically to the underworld deities Dis Pater and Proserpina.
A Republican vow mandated the Secular Games be repeated every 50 years.
Answer: False
According to Varro, a Republican vow stipulated that the Secular Games should be repeated every 100 years, not 50 years.
Modern scholars like Beard, North, and Price suggest Republican Secular Games were primarily driven by immediate pressures of war, not a strict centennial cycle.
Answer: True
These scholars argue that the Republican Games were pragmatic responses to wartime crises, with the idea of a regular centennial celebration developing later.
A planned celebration of the Secular Games in 49 BC was prevented by a severe famine.
Answer: False
The celebration of the Secular Games in 49 BC was prevented by the ongoing civil wars in Rome, not a famine.
When is the first clearly attested celebration of the Secular Games during the Roman Republic generally considered to have occurred by modern scholars?
Answer: 249 BC
Modern scholarship generally identifies 249 BC as the first clearly attested celebration of the Secular Games during the Roman Republic, despite earlier suggestions by ancient antiquarians.
What historical event was occurring during the first well-attested celebration of the Secular Games in 249 BC?
Answer: The First Punic War
The first well-attested Republican Secular Games in 249 BC took place during the First Punic War, a period of significant military conflict for Rome.
What was the nature of the sacrifices performed during the Republican Secular Games?
Answer: Nocturnal sacrifices to underworld deities.
Republican Secular Games involved nocturnal sacrifices at the Tarentum on the Campus Martius, specifically dedicated to Dis Pater and Proserpina.
According to Varro, what was the traditional interval for repeating the Secular Games based on a Republican vow?
Answer: Every 100 years
Varro's account indicates a Republican vow for the Secular Games to be repeated every 100 years.
What did modern scholars like Beard, North, and Price suggest was the primary reason for holding Republican Secular Games in 249 BC and the 140s BC?
Answer: Immediate pressures of war.
These modern scholars contend that the Republican Secular Games were primarily responses to the exigencies of war, rather than strict adherence to a predetermined centennial cycle.
What prevented a celebration of the Secular Games in 49 BC?
Answer: Ongoing civil wars in Rome.
The civil wars plaguing Rome in 49 BC effectively precluded the celebration of the Secular Games that would have been due at that time.
Emperor Nero revived the Secular Games in 17 BC, justifying the date with a new interpretation of a 50-year cycle.
Answer: False
Augustus, not Nero, revived the Secular Games in 17 BC, justifying the date with a Sibylline oracle mandating a 110-year cycle and a new historical reconstruction.
Heralds for Augustus's 17 BC Secular Games invited people to a spectacle they had seen many times before and would see again.
Answer: False
Heralds for Augustus's Games explicitly invited people to 'a spectacle, such as they had never witnessed and never would again,' emphasizing its unique and unprecedented nature.
Before the 17 BC Secular Games, free citizens received gold and silver coins from the *quindecimviri* as a purificatory ritual.
Answer: False
The *quindecimviri* distributed torches, sulfur, and asphalt to free citizens for purification, not gold and silver coins.
During the pre-ceremonies of the 17 BC Secular Games, the Roman people made offerings of wine and olive oil.
Answer: False
During the pre-ceremonies of the 17 BC Secular Games, the Roman people made offerings of wheat, barley, and beans.
Information about Augustus's 17 BC Secular Games is primarily known through detailed accounts in the Roman Senate's daily records.
Answer: False
Information about Augustus's 17 BC Secular Games is primarily known from a partially survived inscribed record decreed by the Senate, not daily records.
Augustus's Secular Games in 17 BC continued the Republican practice of nocturnal sacrifices to Dis Pater and Proserpina.
Answer: False
Augustus's Secular Games introduced nocturnal sacrifices to the Moerae, Ilythiae, and Terra Mater, differing from the Republican practice of sacrificing to Dis Pater and Proserpina.
The new deities honored in Augustus's nocturnal sacrifices were notable for being traditional Roman state cult figures with Latin names.
Answer: False
The new deities (Moerae, Ilythiae, Terra Mater) were notable for being Greek in nomenclature and not having an established Roman state cult, representing a departure from tradition.
Augustus's 17 BC Secular Games introduced day-time sacrifices to Roman deities, alternating with nocturnal sacrifices to Greek deities.
Answer: True
Augustus's Games innovated by incorporating day-time sacrifices to Roman deities on the Capitoline and Palatine hills, alongside the nocturnal sacrifices to the newly introduced Greek deities on the Campus Martius.
During the 17 BC Secular Games, only unmarried Vestal Virgins were permitted to perform specific sacrifices.
Answer: False
Unusually, certain sacrifices during the 17 BC Secular Games were specifically designated to be performed by married women, not exclusively Vestal Virgins.
Each sacrifice performed during the Secular Games was consistently followed by gladiatorial contests.
Answer: False
Each sacrifice during the Secular Games was consistently followed by theatrical performances, not gladiatorial contests.
On the night of May 31st, two bulls were sacrificed to the Moerae during the 17 BC Secular Games.
Answer: False
On the night of May 31st, nine female lambs and nine she-goats were sacrificed to the Moerae, not two bulls.
Two cows were offered to Jupiter Optimus Maximus on June 1st during the 17 BC Secular Games.
Answer: False
On June 1st, two bulls were offered to Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill, not two cows.
On the night of June 1st, a pregnant sow was offered to the Ilythiae during the 17 BC Secular Games.
Answer: False
On the night of June 1st, 27 sacrificial cakes were offered to the Ilythiae, not a pregnant sow.
On June 2nd, nine female lambs and nine she-goats were sacrificed to Juno Regina during the 17 BC Secular Games.
Answer: False
On June 2nd, two cows were sacrificed to Juno Regina on the Capitoline Hill, not nine female lambs and nine she-goats.
A pregnant sow was offered to Terra Mater on the night of June 2nd during the 17 BC Secular Games.
Answer: True
The inscribed record confirms that a pregnant sow was offered to Terra Mater on the Campus Martius on the night of June 2nd.
On June 3rd, two bulls were offered to Apollo and Diana on the Palatine Hill during the 17 BC Secular Games.
Answer: False
On June 3rd, 27 sacrificial cakes were offered to Apollo and Diana on the Palatine Hill, not two bulls.
The key figures performing sacrifices during Augustus's Secular Games were Augustus and his general, Mark Antony.
Answer: False
The key figures performing sacrifices were Augustus and his son-in-law, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, both acting as *quindecimviri*.
The major sacrifices of the 17 BC Secular Games concluded with a gladiatorial combat in the Colosseum.
Answer: False
The major sacrifices of the 17 BC Secular Games concluded with choirs of boys and girls singing the *Carmen Saeculare*, not gladiatorial combat.
The *Carmen Saeculare* was performed only on the Campus Martius and focused primarily on underworld deities.
Answer: False
The *Carmen Saeculare* was performed on both the Palatine and Capitoline hills and primarily focused on Apollo and Diana, deities closely associated with Augustus, not underworld deities.
Following the main sacrifices and theatrical performances, the 17 BC Secular Games concluded with a week of public debates and philosophical discussions.
Answer: False
Following the main sacrifices and theatrical performances, the 17 BC Secular Games featured Greek and Latin plays, followed by chariot racing and hunting displays, not public debates.
Who revived the Secular Games in 17 BC?
Answer: Augustus
Rome's first emperor, Augustus, was responsible for the significant revival of the Secular Games in 17 BC.
What justification was provided for the date of Augustus's Secular Games in 17 BC?
Answer: A Sibylline oracle mandating a 110-year cycle and a new historical reconstruction.
Augustus justified the 17 BC date by referencing a Sibylline oracle that prescribed a 110-year cycle, supported by a reconstructed historical timeline.
What unique invitation did heralds circulate before Augustus's Secular Games in 17 BC?
Answer: An invitation to a spectacle 'such as they had never witnessed and never would again.'
The heralds' proclamation emphasized the unprecedented and singular nature of Augustus's Secular Games, distinguishing them from previous or future events.
What materials did the *quindecimviri* distribute to free citizens for purification before the 17 BC Secular Games?
Answer: Torches, sulfur, and asphalt.
The *quindecimviri* provided torches, sulfur, and asphalt for purificatory rituals, likely drawing inspiration from the Parilia, a festival celebrating Rome's foundation.
Which of the following offerings were made by the Roman people during the pre-ceremonies of the 17 BC Secular Games?
Answer: Wheat, barley, and beans.
During the preliminary ceremonies, the Roman populace offered wheat, barley, and beans as part of the rituals for the Secular Games.
How is information about the ceremonies of Augustus's Secular Games in 17 BC primarily known?
Answer: From a partially survived inscribed record decreed by the Senate.
Our primary knowledge of the 17 BC Secular Games ceremonies comes from a senatorial decree inscribed on a stone tablet, which has partially survived.
Which deities received nocturnal sacrifices during Augustus's Secular Games in 17 BC, differing from Republican practices?
Answer: Moerae, Ilythiae, and Terra Mater
Augustus introduced nocturnal sacrifices to the Moerae, Ilythiae, and Terra Mater, a departure from the Republican tradition of sacrificing to Dis Pater and Proserpina.
What was a notable characteristic of the new deities honored in the nocturnal sacrifices of Augustus's Secular Games?
Answer: They were Greek in nomenclature and did not have an established Roman state cult.
The introduction of Greek-named deities without prior Roman state cults for nocturnal sacrifices represented a significant innovation in Augustus's Games.
What new type of sacrifice was introduced during Augustus's Secular Games in 17 BC?
Answer: Day-time sacrifices to Roman deities on the Capitoline and Palatine hills.
Augustus's Games innovated by introducing day-time sacrifices to traditional Roman deities on prominent Roman hills, complementing the nocturnal rituals.
What specific role did married women play in the sacrifices of the 17 BC Secular Games?
Answer: Certain sacrifices were unusually specified to be performed by them.
The inclusion of married women in performing specific sacrifices was an unusual and notable feature of the 17 BC Secular Games.
What type of entertainment consistently followed each sacrifice during the Secular Games?
Answer: Theatrical performances
Theatrical performances were an integral part of the Secular Games, consistently following each sacrificial ritual.
What was sacrificed to the Moerae on the night of May 31st during the 17 BC Secular Games?
Answer: Nine female lambs and nine she-goats
The nocturnal sacrifice to the Moerae on May 31st involved nine female lambs and nine she-goats, as recorded in the inscribed account.
What was offered to Jupiter Optimus Maximus on June 1st during the 17 BC Secular Games?
Answer: Two bulls
On June 1st, two bulls were offered to Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill as part of the day-time sacrifices.
Who were the key figures involved in performing the sacrifices during Augustus's Secular Games?
Answer: Augustus and Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa
Augustus and his son-in-law, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, both members of the *quindecimviri*, were the principal officiants for the sacrifices.
What significant musical performance concluded the major sacrifices of the 17 BC Secular Games?
Answer: Choirs of boys and girls singing the *Carmen Saeculare*.
The *Carmen Saeculare*, a hymn composed by Horace, was performed by choirs of boys and girls, marking the culmination of the major sacrifices.
Who composed the *Carmen Saeculare* for Augustus's Secular Games?
Answer: Horace
The renowned Roman poet Horace was commissioned to compose the *Carmen Saeculare* specifically for Augustus's Secular Games.
Which deities did the *Carmen Saeculare* primarily focus on?
Answer: Apollo and Diana
The lyrics of the *Carmen Saeculare* were primarily dedicated to Apollo and Diana, deities closely associated with Augustus and his new regime.
What events followed the main sacrifices and theatrical performances during Augustus's Secular Games, between June 5th and June 11th?
Answer: Greek and Latin plays.
The period between June 5th and June 11th was dedicated to the performance of Greek and Latin plays, extending the celebratory aspects of the Games.
Under later emperors, the Secular Games were consistently celebrated every 100 years without any divergence in calculation systems.
Answer: False
Under later emperors, the Secular Games were celebrated using two divergent calculation systems: the Augustan 110-year cycle and the Claudian system for Rome's anniversaries.
Claudius held the Secular Games in AD 47 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Rome's foundation.
Answer: False
Claudius held the Secular Games in AD 47 to celebrate the 800th anniversary of Rome's foundation, not the 500th.
Suetonius noted that Claudius's proclamation for the Secular Games was humorous because it claimed the spectacle was unprecedented, even though some attendees had seen Augustus's Games.
Answer: True
Suetonius recorded the amusement caused by Claudius's herald proclaiming an unprecedented spectacle, as some in the audience had indeed witnessed Augustus's earlier Games.
Emperors Antoninus Pius and Philip I followed the Augustan system for celebrating the Secular Games.
Answer: False
Antoninus Pius and Philip I followed the Claudian system, celebrating Rome's anniversaries, while Domitian and Septimius Severus followed the Augustan system.
Emperors Domitian and Septimius Severus followed the Claudian system for celebrating Rome's anniversaries.
Answer: False
Domitian and Septimius Severus followed the Augustan system for celebrating the Secular Games, not the Claudian system.
Emperors following the Augustan system for Secular Games closely adhered to the 17 BC procedure established by Augustus.
Answer: True
Domitian and Septimius Severus, who followed the Augustan system, are noted for closely adhering to the 17 BC procedure established by Augustus.
The Claudian system for Secular Games maintained rituals at the Tarentum but changed the date to December 25th.
Answer: False
The Claudian system changed the ritual location to the Temple of Venus and Roma (instead of the Tarentum) and likely changed the date to April 21st, aligning with Rome's foundation day.
Antoninus Pius's Secular Games in AD 148 coincided with his *decennalia*, celebrating ten years of his rule.
Answer: True
The Secular Games held by Antoninus Pius in AD 148 had the added significance of coinciding with his *decennalia*, marking a decade of his reign.
What two different calculation systems were used for the Secular Games under later emperors?
Answer: An Augustan 110-year cycle and a Claudian system for Rome's anniversaries.
Later emperors utilized two distinct systems for dating the Secular Games: Augustus's 110-year cycle and Claudius's system, which aligned with Rome's foundation anniversaries.
When did Claudius hold the Secular Games, and what was the specific occasion?
Answer: AD 47, to celebrate the 800th anniversary of Rome's foundation.
Claudius celebrated the Secular Games in AD 47, specifically commemorating the 800th anniversary of the city of Rome's foundation.
Which emperors followed the Augustan system for celebrating the Secular Games?
Answer: Domitian and Septimius Severus
Domitian (AD 88) and Septimius Severus (AD 204) both adhered to the Augustan 110-year cycle for their celebrations of the Secular Games.
Which emperors followed the Claudian system for celebrating the Secular Games, marking Rome's anniversaries?
Answer: Antoninus Pius and Philip I
Antoninus Pius (AD 148) and Philip I (AD 248) adopted the Claudian system, aligning their Secular Games with the 900-year and 1000-year anniversaries of Rome's foundation, respectively.
What change was introduced to the ritual location for the Secular Games celebrated under the Claudian system?
Answer: Rituals were held at the Temple of Venus and Roma instead of the Tarentum.
Under the Claudian system, the traditional ritual site of the Tarentum was replaced by the Temple of Venus and Roma for the Secular Games.
What additional significance did Antoninus Pius's Secular Games in AD 148 hold?
Answer: They coincided with his *decennalia*, celebrating ten years of his rule.
Antoninus Pius's Secular Games in AD 148 were uniquely significant as they also marked his *decennalia*, celebrating a decade of his imperial reign.
The Secular Games were abandoned by AD 314 due to a lack of public interest and funding.
Answer: False
The Secular Games were abandoned by AD 314 because Constantine I, a Christian emperor, was in power, marking the end of this traditional pagan celebration.
The pagan historian Zosimus believed the abandonment of the Secular Games was a positive step for the Roman Empire's modernization.
Answer: False
The pagan historian Zosimus viewed the abandonment of the Secular Games as a critical factor in the decline of the Roman Empire, not a positive step.
By what year were the Secular Games ultimately abandoned?
Answer: AD 314
The Secular Games ceased to be celebrated by AD 314, marking the end of this ancient Roman tradition.
Who was the Christian emperor in power when the Secular Games were abandoned?
Answer: Constantine I
Constantine I, the first Christian Roman emperor, was in power by AD 314, and under his reign, the traditional pagan Secular Games were no longer held.
How did the pagan historian Zosimus interpret the abandonment of the Secular Games?
Answer: As a critical factor in the decline of the Roman Empire.
Zosimus, a pagan historian, attributed the decline of the Roman Empire to the cessation of the Secular Games, viewing it as a neglect of vital traditional rituals.