Lustrum MMDCCLXIV

Lustrum history

The lustration was originally a sacrifice for expiation and purification offered by one of the censors in the name of the Roman people at the close of the taking of the census. The sacrifice was often in the form of an animal sacrifice, known as a suovetaurilia.

These censuses were taken at five-year intervals, thus a lustrum came to refer to the five-year intercensal period.

Livy reports that the first lustration occurred at the conclusion of the first census, conducted by king Servius Tullius in the 6th century BC by the lustration of the full Roman army.

This regular five-year interval between censuses was maintained in the early part of the Roman Republic, which lasted from ca. 509 BC–27 BC, but later became more irregular. The regular interval was restored by Octavianus Augustus in 28 BC after a "41 year gap", as attested by the Res Gestae Divi Augusti. At the time of the census, new senators were also appointed to the Roman Senate.

Source: Livy, Ab urbe condita, 1.44

"The work of the census was accelerated by an enactment in which Servius denounced imprisonment and even capital punishment against those who evaded assessment. On its completion he issued an order that all the citizens of Rome, knights and infantry alike, should appear in the Campus Martius, each in their centuries. After the whole army had been drawn up there, he purified it by the triple sacrifice of a swine, a sheep, and an ox. This was called “a closed lustrum,” because with it the census was completed. Eighty thousand citizens are said to have been included in that census. Fabius Pictor, the oldest of our historians, states that this was the number of those who could bear arms. To contain that population it was obvious that the City would have to be enlarged. He added to it the two hills—the Quirinal and the Viminal—and then made a further addition by including the Esquiline, and to give it more importance he lived there himself. He surrounded the City with a mound and moats and wall; in this way he extended the “pomoerium.” Looking only to the etymology of the word, they explain “pomoerium” as “postmoerium”; but it is rather a “circamoerium.” For the space which the Etruscans of old, when founding their cities, consecrated in accordance with auguries and marked off by boundary stones at intervals on each side, as the part where the wall was to be carried, was to be kept vacant so that no buildings might connect with the wall on the inside (whilst now they generally touch), and on the outside some ground might remain virgin soil untouched by cultivation. This space, which it was forbidden either to build upon or to plough, and which could not be said to be behind the wall any more than the wall could be said to be behind it, the Romans called the “pomoerium.” As the City grew, these sacred boundary stones were always moved forward as far as the walls were advanced."

Source: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, Lustrum.

Open debate

I know the subject of Lustrum and especially of the suovetaurilia sacrifice is an open debate in our context. Why? Because suovetaurilia means the sacrifice of a pig, a sheep and a bull and currently in Nova Roma that is almost something impossible. The reasons are many starting with the modern vision about animal sacrifice and ending with the financial resources for such action. I thought first that replacing the animals with small pieces of meat maybe is a solution. But it is not. I discussed that with my colleague, pontifex Cn. Cornelius Lentulus and we arrived to the conclusion that killing the animal was an important part of the sacrifice in ancient times, an act with great significance and if we can not honor the sacrificed animals in proper immolatio ceremony to replace them with meat is not a solution. Pontifex Cn. Lentulus has also correctly specified that it's not meat that is needed to be sacrificed but intestines and entrails of the animal.

The question remains: how this problem can be solved?

Cato in “De Re Rustica” specifies that during suovetaurilia cakes are sacrificed, too. Using only cakes is a viable solution? Well, we can affirm that it is more a “legal” thing in Roman religious law than offering meat of animals slaughtered in an improper way. Then the mos maiorum Nova Roma developed until now is closer to use cakes, milk, wine or incense for sacrifice. Based on these, we decided that using cakes (libum, representing pig, sheep, and bull) is a solution for this time, a solution which does not exclude another but is in resonance with the current situation.

Performance & credits

• T. Iulius Sabinus, censor & pontifex - acting priest.
• T. Iulius Sabinus Crassus - acting assistant (camillus).
• Cn. Cornelius Lentulus, pontifex - ritual text, Latin & English translation.

The ritual

• Opening of the Lustrum:

- I salute the altar with adoratio and cover my head with the back of my toga. Camillus salute the altar with adoratio and cover his head with the back of his toga. He put on the altar the Nova Roma logo then he move on my right side. I open the lustrum saying:

"Favete linguis!"

("Whatch over your tongues!")

• Sacred purificative circuition:

- I call addressing the assistant (camillus):

"Cum divis volentibus

quodque bene eveniat,

mando tibi, Mani,

uti illace liba velut suovitaurilia

hoc signum, Novam Romam, populum Novum Romanum Quirites,

remque publicam populi Novi Romani Quiritium

quota ex parte sive circumagi sive circumferenda censeas,

uti cures lustrare."

("That with the good help of the gods

success may crown our work,

I bid you, Manius,

to take care to purify

this symbol, Nova Roma, the Nova Roman people of Quirites,

and the republic of the Nova Roman people of Quirites

with these sacrificial cakes as a suovetaurilia,

in whatever part you think best for them to be driven or carried around.")

- The assistant takes the pieces the sacrificial cakes symbolizing the pig, the sheep and the bull, and carries them around the symbol of Nova Roma, walking around it clockwise direction, three times.

* Prefatio:

- I begg the blessing of the main gods of Nova Roma into the lustrum, invoking their presence and their allowance of the ceremony:

"Iane,

te hoc ture commovendo

bonas preces precor,

uti sies volens propitius

Populo Novo Romano Quiritibus,

mihi, domo, familiae!"

("Ianus, by offering this incense to you,

I pray good prayers so

that you may be benevolent and propitious

to the Nova Roman People of Quirites,

to me, to my household and to my family.")

- Incense is placed in the focus of the altar.

"Iuppiter Optime Maxime,

te hoc ture commovendo

bonas preces precor,

uti sies volens propitius

Populo Novo Romano Quiritibus,

mihi, domo, familiae!"

("Iuppiter, the Best and Greatest,

by offering this incense to you,

I pray good prayers so

that you may be benevolent and propitious

to the Nova Roman People of Quirites,

to me, to my household and to my family.")

- Incense is placed in the focus of the altar.

"Mars,

te hoc ture commovendo

bonas preces precor,

uti sies volens propitius

Populo Novo Romano Quiritibus,

mihi, domo, familiae!"

("Mars, by offering this incense to you,

I pray good prayers so

that you may be benevolent and propitious

to the Nova Roman People of Quirites,

to me, to my household and to my family.")

- Incense is placed in the focus of the altar.

"Quirine,

te hoc ture commovendo

bonas preces precor,

uti sies volens propitius

Populo Novo Romano Quiritibus,

mihi, domo, familiae!"

("Quirinus,

by offering this incense to you,

I pray good prayers so

that you may be benevolent and propitious

to the Nova Roman People of Quirites,

to me, to my household and to my family.")

- Incense is placed in the focus of the altar.

"Iane,

uti te ture commovendo

bonas preces precatus sum,

eiusdem rei ergo

macte vino inferio esto!"

("Ianus,

as by offering you the incense

I have prayed good prayers,

for the very same reason

be thou blessed by this sacrificial wine.")

- Libation of wine is made.

"Iuppiter Optime Maxime,

uti te ture commovendo

bonas preces precatus sum,

eiusdem rei ergo

macte vino inferio esto!"

("Iuppiter, the Best and Greatest,

as by offering you the incense

I have prayed good prayers,

for the very same reason

be thou blessed by this sacrificial wine.")

- Libation of wine is made.

"Mars,

uti te ture commovendo

bonas preces precatus sum,

eiusdem rei ergo

macte vino inferio esto!"

("Mars,

as by offering you the incense

I have prayed good prayers,

for the very same reason

be thou blessed by this sacrificial wine.")

- Libation of wine is made.

"Quirine,

uti te ture commovendo

bonas preces precatus sum,

eiusdem rei ergo

macte vino inferio esto!"

("Quirinus,

as by offering you the incense

I have prayed good prayers,

for the very same reason

be thou blessed by this sacrificial wine.")

- Libation of wine is made.

* Precatio lustri:

- I ask Mars to purify Nova Roma:

"Mars pater,

te precor quaesoque

uti censu Novae Romae rite acto,

hoc die festivissimo lustri faciendi

sies volens propitius

Novae Romae lustrandae,

populo Novo Romano Quiritibus lustrandis,

reique publicae populi Novi Romani Quiritium lustrandae,

mihi domo familiae lustrandae,

quoius rei ergo hoc signum, Novam Romam,

populum Novum Romanum Quirites,

remque publicam populi Novi Romani Quiritium

suovitaurilia circumagi iussi,

uti tu morbos visos invisosque,

viduertatem vastitudinemque,

calamitates intemperiasque

prohibessis defendas averruncesque;

utique tu omnes eventus semper

bonos fautosque esse siris,

rem publicam Novam Romanam salvam servassis

duisque bonam salutem valetudinemque

Novae Romae,

populo Novo Romano Quiritibus,

reique publicae populi Novi Romani Quiritium,

mihi domo familiae,

harumce rerum ergo,

Novae Romae lustrandae,

populi Novi Romani Quiritium lustrandorum,

reique publicae populi Novi Romani Quiritium lustrandae,

lustrique faciendi ergo,

sicuti dixi,

macte hisce libis velut suovitaurilibus inmolandis esto!

Mars pater,

eiusdem rei ergo

macte hisce libis velut suovitaurilibus esto!"

("Father Mars,

now, upon having properly conducted the Census of Nova Roma,

on this most festive day of celebrating the Lustrum,

I pray and beseech you

that you be benevolent and propotious

to Nova Roma, under lustration,

to the Nova Roman people of Quirites, under lustration,

and to the republic of the Nova Roman people of Quirites, under lustration,

to me, to my household and to my family, under lustration;

to which intent I have bidden these sacrificial cakes as a suovetaurilia

to be led around this symbol, Nova Roma,

the Nova Roman people of Quirites,

and the republic of the Nova Roman people of Quirites;

that you keep away, ward off, and remove

sickness, seen and unseen,

barrenness and destruction,

ruin and unseasonable influence;

that you allow all events

to be good and salutary always,

preserve in health the Nova Roman Republic,

and give good health and strength to Nova Roma,

to the Nova Roman people of Quirites,

and to the republic of the Nova Roman people of Quirites,

to me, to my household and to my family,

For these very reasons,

to the intent of purifying Nova Roma,

purifying the Nova Roman people of Quirites,

purifying the republic of the Nova Roman people of Quirites

and of making a Lustrum,

as I have said,

deign to accept the offering of these sacrificial cakes as a suovetaurilia.

Father Mars,

to the same intent

deign to accept the offering of these sacrificial cakes as a suovetaurilia.")

* Sacrificium suovetaurilium:

- I place the suovetaurilia into the fire, saying the following for each item I offer (pronouncing the name of Mars is forbidden here):

"Eiusque rei ergo

macte suovitaurilibus inmolandis esto."

("And to this intent

be blessed by the sacrifice of suovetaurilia.")

- I place sacrificial cake representing pig into the fire.

"Eiusque rei ergo

macte suovitaurilibus inmolandis esto."

("And to this intent

be blessed by the sacrifice of suovetaurilia.")

- I place sacrificial cake representing sheep into the fire.

"Eiusque rei ergo

macte suovitaurilibus inmolandis esto."

("And to this intent

be blessed by the sacrifice of suovetaurilia.")

- I place sacrificial cake representing bull into the fire.

* Sacrificium struis et ferti:

- I sacrifice a strues and a fertum. Note: the strues is a pile of small offering-cakes, a heap of cakes and the fertum is a particular type of cake.

"Mars pater,

uti te suovetaurilibus immolatis

bonis precibus bene precatus sum,

eiusdem rei ergo

macte hac strue esto!"

("Father Mars,

as by sacrificing you the suovetaurilia

I have prayed well with good prayers,

for the very same reason

be thou blessed by this strues.")

- Strues is placed into the fire.

"Mars pater,

uti te suovetaurilibus immolatis

bonis precibus bene precatus sum,

eiusdem rei ergo

macte hoc ferto esto!"

("Father Mars,

as by sacrificing you the suovetaurilia

I have prayed well with good prayers,

for the very same reason

be thou blessed by this fertum.")

- Fertum is placed into the fire.

* Piaculum:

At the end, a piaculum is to be done for the sake of safety, in case if I made a mistake in the ceremony. For the piaculum, I offer another suovetaurilia to Mars, and incense for all gods invoked.

"Mars pater,

si quid tibi in illisce libis velut suovitaurilibus neque satisfactum est,

te hisce libis velut suovitaurilibus piaculo."

("Father Mars,

if something in those sacrificial cakes as a suovetaurilia was not pleasing to you,

I placate you with these sacrificial cakes as a suovetaurilia.")

- Another 3 cakes representing pig, sheep and bull are placed into the fire.

"Iane, Iuppiter Optime Maxime, Mars, Quirine,

si quid vobis in hoc lustro displicuit,

vos hoc thure obmovendo piaculo."

("Ianus, Iuppiter, the Best and Greatest, Mars, Quirinus,

if anything in this Lustum was displeasing to you,

I placate you with this incense.")

- Incense is placed in the focus of the altar.

* Closing of the lustrum:

- I say:

"Nova Roma lustrata est!

Ilicet!"

("Nova Roma is purified by the Lustrum!

"It's permitted to go!")

Significance

With the ritual cleansing of Nova Roma and Novi Romani performed, there is a new foundation of all public affairs, morals, finances, actions and activities.

That is a restart, the beginning of another level of evolution of our Nova Roman community.

It is in our hands to make the difference to a superior level. That is our Gods expectation as time They approved the sacrifice based of the received signs (birds flying from East to West) at the ritual end.

That is, a restart! May the Gods bless all of us!

Titus Iulius Sabinus

Censor.

Go to

Census page.