Terms to Know in Connection With Roman Burial Practices

Unless otherwise noted, the source for these terms to know in connection with Roman burial practices is an information-packed old article, "Burial Customs of the Romans," by John L. Heller; The Classical Weekly (1932), pp.193-197. Most are Latin.

1. Cena novemdialis - a memorial meal on the 8th day of mourning following a sacrifice to the manes of the deceased.
2. Cenotaph - an empty tomb for someone who had died at sea. All honors due the dead were paid to the cenotaph.
3. Collegia funeraticia - funeral societies mostly for slaves and freedmen.
4. Collocatum - placement on the funeral couch.
5. Columbaria - resting places for the ashes of members of the collegia funeraticia.
6. Conclamatio - a loud cry that followed the closing of the dead person's eyes that was the start of the lamenting. They also called his name make sure he was actually dead.
7. Depositum - when the dying man breathed his last -- breath containing a soul to be caught and contained by his nearest relative -- he was deposited on the ground to return the body to the earth from which it came.
8. Dissignatores - funeral directors
9. Feriae denicales - final religious ceremony.
10. Funus acerbum - funeral for young children and boys who had not yet donned the toga virilis.
11. Funus indicitum - public funeral proclaimed by a herald.
12. Funus plebeium, tacitum, traliticium - funeral for the poor, not proclaimed.
13. Imagines - masks of the family ancestors, prepared by the pollinctores during the lying-in-state.
14. Laudatio funebris - funeral oration.
15. Lectus (feretrum) - funeral bier.
16. Lectus funebris - funeral couch.
17. Libitinarii - Roman undertakers who supplied the pollinctores.
18. Ludi - games, jests that were part of the funeral.
19. Lugubria - dark clothing of the mourners.
20. Nenia - the dirge sung by the praeficae.
21. Olla - clay urn with the remains.
22. Os resectum - a symbolic finger bone was cut off and buried so that there would be a symbolic burial when the body was actually being cremated.
23. Ossa componere - [Roman Life Under the Caesars, by Émile Thomas] placing of the bones into an urn which was then crowned with flowers.
24. Ossilegium - [Roman Life Under the Caesars, by Émile Thomas] the collecting of the bones to put in the urn.
25. Pollinctores - a class of men who may have been slaves from the Temple of Venus Libitina who performed the laying out of the body. Either they did or the women of the family did it.
26. Pompa - the train, parade, funeral procession.
27. Porca praecidanea - the annual sacrifice of a sow, made as an atonement doe failing to complete the rites of burial.
28. Porca praesentanea - sow sacrifice at the feriae denicales, to hallow the grave and purify the family.
29. Praeficae - hired mourning women
30. Puticuli - pits on the Esquiline into which the destitute and condemned criminals were cast.
31. Rogus (pyra) - funeral pyre.
32. Sandapila - the litter for the corpse for the lower classes.
33. Silicernium - sacrifical meal held near the tomb so the deceased could partake.
34. Ustrina - a place in the columbaria or near the tomb to burn the bodies.
35. Vespillones - pall-bearers for the lower classes.

Previous

• 1
• 2

Next