AMBARVALIA (Ambarvales). - A Roman conceptiva festival, that is, one of those that were proclaimed year by year by the pontiffs in relation to the seasonal cycle, and therefore not recorded in the "Numan" calendar. It consisted essentially in the circumambulation of the fields, that is, in leading around them the three characteristic animals of Roman sacrifice: the pig, the sheep and the ox. Cato (De agr., 144) describes the rite and transcribes the prayer formula. According to W. Henzen, Th. Mommsen, G. Wissowa, the Ambarvalia would be identified with the great rite of May celebrated by the Arval Brethren (v.) in their sanctuary on the via Campana; but this is a hypothesis that merits confirmation, because the surviving Acts do not mention the circumambulatory rite, and because the three animals, which the Arval Brethren also sacrificed, are immolated separately, at three different moments and for different reasons.
Enciclopedia Cattolica Vol. I, 1948 Non-Christian religions Particular topics
Ambarvalia (Ambarvales)
AMBARVALI (AMBARVALIA)
Also known as: Ambarvalia festival
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Translated from the Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. I (1948), coll. 980–981.
More by Nicola Turchi: Aloe ('ΑΛῺΣ, from ἌΛΩΣ "Let it be") · Anastasius I, Pope, Saint · Soul · Animal · Anterus, Pope
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Chicago
Turchi, Nicola. “Ambarvali (Ambarvalia).” In Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. I, coll. 980–981. Città del Vaticano: Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1948. https://azioneromana.com/article/ambarvali-ambarvalia.
MLA
Turchi, Nicola. “Ambarvali (Ambarvalia).” Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. I, Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1948, coll. 980–981. Azione Romana, https://azioneromana.com/article/ambarvali-ambarvalia.
BibTeX
@incollection{ec1_ambarvali_ambarvalia,
author = {Turchi, Nicola},
title = {Ambarvali (Ambarvalia)},
booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica},
volume = {I},
pages = {980--981},
note = {Cited by column},
publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico},
address = {Città del Vaticano},
year = {1948},
url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/ambarvali-ambarvalia}
}
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