Title

Octavian And Egyptian Cults: Redrawing The Boundaries Of Romanness

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-2008

Publication Title

American Journal Of Philology

Department

Classics

Abstract

Octavian's decision in 28 B.C.E. to ban Egyptian cults from within the pomerium was not a sign of hostility to foreign cults, especially since the emperor himself arranged for the restoration of those shrines outside the city's religious boundary. Rather, his action served to reassert the Roman openness to foreign religions while at the same time underlining the distinctions between Roman and foreign religious practices. Using the pomerium to demarcate a clear boundary between Roman and non-Roman helped to reconstruct the sense of Roman identity that had been shattered by the civil wars of the previous fifty years.

Volume

129

Issue

2

pp.

231-253

ISSN

0002-9475

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