Reading list for the cultus deorum

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Primary Literature

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

The "Meditations of Marcus Aurelius", musings of one of the most famous Stoics of history; the Emperor Marcus Aurelius.

Marcus Aurelius (Loeb Classical Library 58) 

(C.R. Haines (Editor), Aurelius Antoninus Marcus / Hardcover / Published 1930 / ISBN 0674990641). Part of the Loeb Classical Library (#58).

The Emperor's Handbook: A New Translation of The Meditations 

(David Hicks (Translator), C. Scot Hicks (Translator) / Hardcover / 2002 / ISBN 0743233832 )

Meditations (Modern Library Classics) 

(Gregory Hays (Translator) / Paperback / 2003 / ISBN 0812968255 )

Marcus Tullius Cicero

The Nature of the Gods and on Divination (Great Books in Philosophy) 

(Marcus Tullius Cicero, C.D. Yonge (Translator) / Paperback / Published 1997 reprint of 1853 edition/ ISBN 1573921807). Important first-hand accounts of attitudes towards religion and divination in the late Republic.

The Nature of the Gods (Penguin Classics) 

Marcus Tullius Cicero, J. M. Ross (Introduction), Horace C. P. McGregor (Translator) / Paperback / Reissue edition 1972 / ISBN 0140442650

The Republic and The Laws 

Marcus Tullius Cicero, Jonathan Powell (Introduction), Niall Rudd (Translator) / Paperback / 1998 / ISBN 0192832360

Sourcebooks

Roman Religion: A Sourcebook 

Valerie M. Warrior / Paperback / 2002 /ISBN 1585100307 Read a review at UNRV

Secondary Literature

General

Dictionary of Roman Religion 

(Lesley Adkins, Roy A. Adkins / Hardcover / Published 1995 / ISBN 0816030057). An excellent resource for general knowledge or just to look up that obscure temple or God. Includes a very good bibliography.

An Introduction to Roman Religion 

(John Scheid, Janet Lloyd (Translator) / ISBN 0253216605) This is an English translation of the book La Religion des Romains (ISBN 2200263775) . This book is a must for all those who wish to know what the Religio Romana was and how it was practiced. It is written in the form of a manual, a small booklet very easy to read, with lots of notes, quotations and illustrations.

Religions of Rome, (2 Volumes) 

(Mary Beard, John North & Simon Price / Paperback / 1998). Volume I (ISBN 0521316820) is a history from early Rome down to the Christian emperors (the last chapter). Volume 2 (ISBN 0521456460) is a sourcebook with lots of pictures, including calendar, religious places, festivals and ceremonies, sacrifices and divination.

Specific Topics

The Flamen 

(J. Vanggaard / 1988 / ISBN 8772890592) Gathers together all the known evidence on the Roman flamines.

Les flamines et leurs dieux 

(Domenico Fasciano, Pierre Seguin / 1993 / WorldCat no. 28673540)

The Roman Goddess Ceres 

(Barbette Stanley Spaeth / 1996 / ISBN 0292776926) A work based on the author's doctoral thesis on all known evidence about the Goddess.

Death and Burial in the Roman World 

(J.M.C. Tonybee / 1996 / ISBN 0801855071) A covering of the various aspects of death, burial, funerals, and the afterlife as based on the ancient sources and archaeology.

La vie religieuse des matrones dans la Rome Archaique 

(Ecole francaise de Rome) / (Nicole Boels-Janssen) / Published 1993 / ISBN 2728302820) Important discussion of household ritual, discussion of the flaminica.

Women's religious activity in the Roman Republic

(Celia E. Schultz / 2006 / ISBN 67874276 ) via epigrahpic evidence & votive deposits, this book analyses women's participation in the public religious sphere, domestic rituals, and the role of the flaminate as a married priesthood.

Empire

The Cults of the Roman Empire 

(Ancient World (Oxford, England).) (Robert Turcan, Antonia Nevill (Translator) / Paperback / Published 1996 / ISBN 0631200479). Terrific information on the influences of foreign cults on Rome, including Isis, the Magna Mater, etc.

Paganism in the Roman Empire 

(Ramsay MacMullen / Paperback / Published 1983 / ISBN 0300029845).

Etruscans

Etruscan Life and Afterlife: A Handbook of Etruscan Studies 

(Larissa Bonfante (Editor) / Paperback / Published 1987 / ISBN 0814318134). While it doesn't specifically deal with Classical Rome, the Etruscans were important contributors to the Roman conception of death, religion, and the afterlife. An important foundational work.

Religion and Law

International Law in Archaic Rome: War and Religion 

(Alan Watson / Hardcover / Published 1993 / ISBN 0801845068). While it may seem odd to include a book on international law in the religion section, this excellent resource is essentially about the Fetiales, the priests whose duties included the maintenance of international relations; treaties, declarations of war, etc. A must-read for anyone aspiring to become a member of the Fetiales. (FVG)

The State, Law and Religion: Pagan Rome 

(Alan Watson / Hardcover / 1992 / ISBN 0820313874). Watson analyzes the interaction of law and religion in ancient Rome, drawing connections between class tensions and the development of civil and religious law.

ANRW II 16.3 (1986), 2146-2312 "The Augural Law" 

(Jerzy Linderski) / ISBN 3110018853 (I,1) A seminal monograph on augural law, in English.

Roman augural lore in Greek historiography; a study of the theory and terminology

(Jyri Vaahtera) / 2001 / ISBN 3515079467