Final Draft - Preview Matter - Florida State University
Final Draft - Preview Matter - Florida State University
Final Draft - Preview Matter - Florida State University
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the writer-physician and the divine seer.” 192 Two elements of the statue’s pose reflect this<br />
possibility: the scroll, an item on which a prophecy may be written, and the gesture of raising<br />
the hand to the chin, a sign of thoughtfulness. As mentioned earlier, Aesculapius might provide<br />
an oracle for a patient during the period of incubation spent in the god’s shrine. Thus, Faunus’<br />
shrine on this island is appropriately placed next to Aesculapius since Faunus may also provide<br />
oracles through the same process of sleeping in the god’s temple precinct. 193 Likewise, the snake<br />
was associated with oracles through its connection to the earth, 194 not the least of which was the<br />
Delphic oracle, seized from Mother Earth by Aesculapius’s father Apollo. In Latium, a serpent<br />
oracle was closely associated with another deity discussed in this study, Juno Sospita. 195<br />
Aesculapius’ parentage may also predispose him to the mantic arts. In the cult of Aesculapius,<br />
prophecy was practiced through the process of incubation. 196<br />
Aesculapius was not the only benevolent, divine figure that could take the form of a<br />
serpent. The concept of the Genius, often thought of as representative of “old Roman religion”<br />
with roots in Etruscan cult, 197 is nebulous and vague and could be attached to a variety of ideas<br />
ranging from the Genius of the paterfamilias of a household to the Genius of the Roman people<br />
or emperor. 198 The Genius of a household represented reproductive power, in particular the<br />
power that passed from father to son in each generation and preserved the continuity of the<br />
gens. 199 When the Genius was represented in art he was typically shown as a male wearing a<br />
toga (often capite velato), holding a patera, cornucopia or both, and making an offering at an<br />
altar. 200 The Genius does not appear alone, though, and is often associated with other Roman<br />
192 Kerényi 1959, 65.<br />
193 Palmer 1974, 139.<br />
194 Schouten 1967, 36-7.<br />
195 Since there is no indication that Juno Sospita was conceived of as a serpent, I shall hold discussion of the serpent<br />
oracle associated with her cult until Chapter Four where it serves as an indicator of her chthonic character.<br />
196 Kerényi 1959, 36-8.<br />
197 Andersen (1993, 55) concludes that the domestic cult was an integral part of Etruscan family life in the Iron Age<br />
and early Orientalizing period. This practice continued throughout their history. Weinstock (1946, 109-14, 126)<br />
also demonstrates that the Etruscans had a conception of household deities such as the Genius and the Lares in his<br />
discussion of Martianus Capella’s text. Weinstock concludes his article with a statement regarding the great<br />
difficulty of using this text and the problems of interpreting an Etruscan document which has been influenced by<br />
Greek religion and passed down by a Roman antiquarian. Altheim (1938, 60-1) notes that the concept of genius was<br />
common to both the Etruscans and Romans. De Grummond (2006a, ) convincingly proposes that the Roman<br />
concept of Genius is parallel to the Etruscan Mari . Boyce (1942, 20) notes the development and expansion from<br />
the household god to state divinity.<br />
198 Fowler (1969, 14), following the old-fashioned tenets of so-called Roman animism, proposes that the Genius<br />
formed a core Roman belief that was not harmed by the advent of anthropomorphic deities.<br />
199 Altheim 1938, 59; Fowler 1969, 17.<br />
200 Romeo 1997, 606.<br />
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