Author’s Prologue anevengreaterdearthfrominsideRomeitself.Thisisthegreatweaknessof
republicanhistory,inspiteofitsendlessfascination,thepowerfulnarratives
whichrecordit,andtheprofoundnatureofitsimpactontheoutsideworld,
fromBritaintoMesopotamia.Itisalsothereasonwhytheinfluenceofan-
thropologyhasnotbeenfeltinRomanhistoryasithasinGreek.For,inorder
tobeabletoborrow(asweshould)approachesdevelopedinsocialanthro-
pology,werequireasocietytoapplythemto,oratleastonewhichwecan
convinceourselvesthatwecaninsomesenseobserveandunderstand.But
whenwespeakof ‘‘Roman’’society,whatdowemean?Theinhabitantsof
thecity,aboutwhoselifeweknowalmostnothing?Oroftheviciwhichsur-
roundedit?Orthecitizenfarmersoccupyingtheterritorystretchingnorth
across Italy to the Adriatic, or south-east to Campania? Or the people of
small,ancienturbancentresandpoliticalcommunitieslikeArpinum,enjoy-
ingafulldualcitizenship,Romanandlocal,after..?Thetruthisthat
thereisnotevenoneoftheseseveralverycontrastingcomponentelements
oftheRomancitizenbodyofbefore..ofwhichwecangainanyserious
conceptionatall.
This problem shows up perhaps most clearly of all when we discuss
‘‘Romanreligion’’—or‘‘thereligionsofRome,’’asaremarkableandimpor-
tantrecentworkputsit.^40 Foreventhisbookconcentratesontheevolution
of cults and religious practices in the cityof Rome itself. But what of the
cultsofTusculum,oroftheSabinecounty,orPicenum?Whattempleswere
thereinArpinum,howwerepriestschosen,whatwastheformoftheirreli-
giouscalendar?Evenmoreprofoundly,ourviewofRomanreligion,inspite
ofthefactthatmostRomancitizensmusthavelivedbyagriculture,failsto
giveacentralplacetotheofferingsandprayerswhichafarmerwasadvised
tocarryoutif hewantedhiscropstoflourish.Indeed,wehardlyhaveany
impressionofthereligiouspracticeofagricultureatallexceptfromCato’s
De agri cultura.Oneexamplewillsuffice:^41
ThefollowingistheRomanformulatobeobservedinthinningagrove:
Apigistobesacrificed,andthefollowingprayeruttered:‘‘Whether
thou be god or goddess towhom this grove is dedicated, as it is thy
righttoreceiveasacrificeofapigforthethinningofthisgrove,and
tothisintent,whetherIoroneatmybiddingdoit,mayitberightly
done.Tothisend,inofferingthispigtotheeIhumblybegthatthou
wiltbegraciousandmercifultome,tomyhouseandhousehold,and.M.Beard,J.North,andS.Price,The Religions of RomeI–II().
. Cato,De agri cultura,–(Loebtrans.).