1 Earliest Rome

9.3 Funeral ceremonies
prominently upright, less often it reclines. In the presence of the whole people standing, a
grown-up son, if there is one and if he is present, or otherwise some other member of the
family, goes up to the rostra and makes a speech about the virtues of the dead man and
the achievements of his life. As a result of this, the people, not just those with a share in
the achievements but even those without, are so moved to sympathy by having the facts
called to mind and to sight, that it seems as though the loss belongs to the whole people
not just to the mourners. After this, when the burial and the usual rituals have been
carried out, they place the image of the dead man in the most conspicuous position of
the house, enclosed in a wooden shrine. This image consists of a mask that reproduces his
features and complexion with remarkable faithfulness. 1
At the public sacrifices, they
display these images and decorate them carefully. On the deaths of distinguished family
members, they take the masks to the funeral, worn by those who seem to have the closest
resemblance in point of size and gait. These men also dress up in the
appropriate kind of toga: purple-bordered for a consul ox praetor; all
purple for a censor; gold-embroidered for one who had celebrated a triumph or achieved
something similar. They also ride in chariots, preceded by the fasces, the axes and the
magisterial symbols, according to the various levels of dignity they reached in their
lifetimes through their public careers. When they reach the rostra, they all sit in order on
ivory chairs. There could be no finer or nobler sight for a man intent on glory and virtue.
For who could fail to be inspired by seeing the images of men so famous for their virtue,
all together as though living and breathing? What more glorious vision could there
be?(54) What is more, the orator at the funeral, after speaking about the dead man
himself, goes back to describe the achievements and exploits of each of the others present,
starting from the most ancient of them. In this way, because of this constantly renewed
reciting of the virtues of the brave, the fame of those who performed noble deeds is
immortalized and the glory of those who benefited the fatherland is made known to the
people and thus becomes a legacy for future generations. Most important of all, the
young men are inspired to suffer everything for the common good, in pursuit of the glory
that comes to the brave.
1. The possible Influence of these masks on the development of Roman portraiture is discussed
by Smith (1981) 31-2.
9.3b Imperial apotheosis
Cassius Dio was well placed to describe the funeral rites of the emperor Pertinax
in A.D. 193; he was a leading senator of the period, holding the highest
offices (consul A.D. 205 and 229); he was also, as this passage makes clear, an
eyewitness of the ceremonial. The circumstances were in fact unusual,
because Pertinax had been assassinated some months earlier, and the new
emperor, Septimius Severus, had come to the throne after a second coup. It was,
therefore, in his interest to establish his links with the legitimate succession
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