Classical Mythology

(^658) THE NATURE OF ROMAN MYTHOLOGY
LEGENDS OF THE REGAL PERIOD
The period of the kings (which traditionally ended in 509 B.c.) and of the early
Republic is full of stories that are more myth than history. We give a few ex-
amples here.
THE HORATII
In the reign of the third king, Tullus Hostilius, there was war between Rome
and Alba Longa, which ended in the destruction of Alba. At an earlier stage,
the two sides agreed to decide the issue by a battle between champions, three
brothers on each side; the Alban champions were the Curiatii, the Romans
were the Horatii. Two Romans were quickly killed, but the third, who was
unwounded, separated and dispatched singly his wounded opponents. Now
his sister had been betrothed to one of the Curiatii; and as her brother was
triumphantly entering Rome, bearing the spoils of the dead Curiatii, she cried
out in grief. Horatius killed her immediately for her inopportune and unpa-
triotic gesture. As a murderer, he was condemned to death, but on appeal to
the people, he gained a reversal of the verdict because of his popularity as a
courageous soldier. He underwent a ritual purification by offering a sacrifice
and passing with veiled head beneath a kind of yoke or crossbar (i.e., a hor-
izontal beam supported by two upright poles). The crossbar was called the
tigillum sororium and was flanked by two altars, one dedicated to Janus Curi-
atius, the other to Juno Sororia.
The association of Horatius with the tigillum sororium was the result of
confusing the archaic title of Juno Sororia with the Latin word soror, a sister.
Passing under the yoke was indeed a ceremony of purification, but, as the ti-
tles of the two divinities prove, the purification in this case was of boys and
girls reaching the age of puberty. The boys, initiated at the altar of Janus Cu-
riatius, went out to their first battle, and on their return they were purified
from blood-guilt by passing beneath the tigillum. Juno Sororia likewise
presided over the initiation of girls into adult life. Other details of the legend
are etiological. The appeal of Horatius explains the Roman citizen's right of
appeal to the people. The legend of the Horatii and Curiatii may have de-
rived from five ancient mound tombs, in two groups of two and three,
respectively, outside Rome in the direction of Alba. Another ancient stone
tomb stood near the place where Horatia was said to have been killed by
her brother.
THE TARQUINS AND SERVIUS TULLIUS
The last three kings of Rome were Tarquinius Priscus, Servius Tullius, and Tar-
quinius Superbus. The two Tarquins were Etruscans, and Servius probably was