The Cults of Roman Empire By Robert Turcan
October 9th 2006 04:21
The Cults of Roman Empire deals with not the regular religion of the Romans but the number of foreign cults that flourished there. Rome, like any other cosmopolitan power, hosted any number of foreign peoples on its soil. These cults first took root among them and then would spread to the main city and the Roman peoples. Cybele came from Phrygia, Isis from Egypt, Mithra from Persia, Dea Syria as the name suggests came from Syria. It’s interesting to note that the paganism of the West is not much different from the paganism of East.
Some of the cults like Cybele or Mithras we know about. But, this book deals with even obscure cults like Dea Syria, Jupiter Neopolitanus, Elgabal etc.
Written originally in French by Robert Turcan and translated into Antonio Nevill, The Cults of Roman Empire is a scholarly, exhaustive work. The author examines each cult thoroughly, where it originated, how it was received in Rome and also provides an extensive list of archaeology sites by which we know what we know about each cult. I am no judge of the information provided but I do think the conclusions are a bit tendentious. I did take some of the information here as gospel only to find out after a little research that Trucan has not differentiated between opinion and fact.
It is written in a lyrical though somewhat obtuse style, and you can detect the hallmarks of modern scholarship writing. I missed the old style, with its stiff formality and rigid structure. The problem with this book is that it is definitely written for one with some knowledge about the subject and Roman history. I stumbled on it accidentally and being interested in ancient religions, started reading the book. But it proved to be a bit difficult read because you don’t get the background information that you require to understand many of the concepts. Still, it was a rewarding read in the end.
The name of this blog incidentally comes from this book. Cenacle is a word used often in Catholic contexts but it also means a circle of writers. In this book, cenacle was a word used in the context of rituals of Mithraism. I had a rather obscure connection with Mithra myself (he is the tutelary god of my birth-star), and hence the name of this blog.
Some of the cults like Cybele or Mithras we know about. But, this book deals with even obscure cults like Dea Syria, Jupiter Neopolitanus, Elgabal etc.
Written originally in French by Robert Turcan and translated into Antonio Nevill, The Cults of Roman Empire is a scholarly, exhaustive work. The author examines each cult thoroughly, where it originated, how it was received in Rome and also provides an extensive list of archaeology sites by which we know what we know about each cult. I am no judge of the information provided but I do think the conclusions are a bit tendentious. I did take some of the information here as gospel only to find out after a little research that Trucan has not differentiated between opinion and fact.
Mithras Source : www.sunlit.hu
It is written in a lyrical though somewhat obtuse style, and you can detect the hallmarks of modern scholarship writing. I missed the old style, with its stiff formality and rigid structure. The problem with this book is that it is definitely written for one with some knowledge about the subject and Roman history. I stumbled on it accidentally and being interested in ancient religions, started reading the book. But it proved to be a bit difficult read because you don’t get the background information that you require to understand many of the concepts. Still, it was a rewarding read in the end.
The name of this blog incidentally comes from this book. Cenacle is a word used often in Catholic contexts but it also means a circle of writers. In this book, cenacle was a word used in the context of rituals of Mithraism. I had a rather obscure connection with Mithra myself (he is the tutelary god of my birth-star), and hence the name of this blog.
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