paganism of the ancient world, which is why one sees cives romani honoring
Mercury in Gaul and Frugifer in a temple of Alma in Africa.
The Roman gods took an even more important place in the background noise of
the polytheistic religious diversity so well adapted, ultimately, to the imperial struc-
ture, something which affirmed the provincial communities’ political rapprochement
with Rome. If there were numerous combinations possible from city to city, the im-
portance taken by Jupiter Capitolinus and the divine honors granted to the emperor
and the imperial family are undeniable. At the same time, this phenomenon cannot
be dismissed as banal allegiance, as these cults were the manifestation of a sincere
impetus on the part of the people in question, quite simply because integration was
taken for granted and meant that those in the provinces shared Rome’s destiny. The
safeguarding of the city was inseparably tied to that of the empire. This was the very
justification used officially for Caracalla’s edict of 212, which extended Roman
citizenship to all free men of the empire: “I believe that I can serve the glory of the
immortal gods (the Greek gods and the gods of Rome) by making all those who
are part of my people participate in the cult of the gods with me. This is why I grant
Roman citizenship to all the peregriniof the earth.” Rome had become the com-
mon homeland of all (Digesta50.1.33).
The Gods of the Cities and the Gods of Rome:
A Shared Destiny
Let us admit right away that, even in the first half of the third centuryad, it is difficult
to see any sort of failure in the system so far described or even signs of this failure’s
approach: the immortal gods invoked by Caracalla reign supreme over the empire
and still favor imperial endeavors. In the totality of the oikoumene, the fragmenta-
tion of divine patronage made it possible for communities and individuals to be
harbored within a fine network of protection. Moreover – as it should have – piety
played first and foremost an essential role in putting people’s minds at rest. “I prayed
to the gods on your behalf every day,” we find in letters from Egypt. People con-
tinued to turn to local gods known, of course, to be powerful and capable of ensur-
ing day-to-day stability, whether for a birth, illness, or good harvest, as can be seen
from the thousands of ex-votos found in public and private sanctuaries throughout
the Roman world.
Among the many examples are the numerous votive dedications found in Phrygia
addressed to Zeus Alsenos, Zeus Patarenos, or Zeus Thallos (Drew-Bear et al.
1999). Sometimes, eyes are represented on these steles in such a way as to draw
the god’s attention, or hands are depicted palms up in the normal attitude of piety.
We should note that these steles come, for the most part, from illegal excavations,
which means that we lack crucial information concerning the sanctuaries them-
selves and the cults celebrated in them. Parallel to these testimonies from the
eastern empire, one can cite for the western empire, in random order, the numer-
ous ex-votos found at the source of the Seine, domain of the goddess Sequana, or
92 William Van Andringa