Funeral Customs of the Ancient Romans

Question 1

What are the Romans mainly known for?

Answer 1

Their bureaucracy - contributions to science and art of administration

Question 2

The doctrine which holds that the soul of man, although separated at death, hovers around the place of burial for its continued peace and happiness, requiring constant attention from the descendants in the form of offerings of food and drink

Answer 2

Animistic View

Question 3

What would happen should the offerings be discontinued?

Answer 3

The soul would be unhappy and become an evil spirit, bringing harm upon those who had neglected the offerings

Question 4

With this philosophy, the spiritual aspects of the afterlife were added to Roman beliefs, including the hop of joining with the cult god in a pleasant, wondrous, or ecstatic existence in eternity. It also brought about the concept of punishment and unhappiness for the evil

Answer 4

Mystery cults of the oriental east

Question 5

A more philosophical conception that the body and the soul, composed of atoms, simply disintegrated at death resulting in a ‘live for the day’ philosophy

Answer 5

Epicurean Influence

Question 6

The result of this was the belief that the immortality of the soul that in the future would reunite with a risen body, and that every human body was the temple of the holy spirit and should not be desecrated in any way

Answer 6

Influence of Christianity

Question 7

Why did cremation come to an end in Rome?

Answer 7

The mystery cults and the rise of Christianity

Question 8

Why did the Mystery Cults forbid cremation?

Answer 8

Their abhorrence of fire

Question 9

What did Christianity emphasize on that caused the end of cremation?

Answer 9

Hallowed nature of the body as the temple of the Holy Ghost

Question 10

Burial outside of the population centers along roadways done for sanitary reasons

Answer 10

Extramural Interment

Question 11

Burial inside of the church because it was felt that the dead Christians should be buried within their church

Answer 11

Intramural Interment

Question 12

The poor, or Misera plebs, became a function of the state, bringing about the rise of these

Answer 12

Burial Societies

Question 13

What did the burial societies do?

Answer 13

People joined these and pooled money together to pay for people’s funerals

Question 14

What is the origins of the insurance industry?

Answer 14

Burial Societies

Question 15

List the Funeral Functionaries in Roman Society

Answer 15

Libitina
Libitinarius
Pollinctores
Designator
Praeco

Question 16

Goddess of corpses and funerals

Answer 16

Libitina

Question 17

Operated from the temple of Libitina
Supervising secular funeral director charging for his services
Dominated and directed the funeral

Answer 17

Libitinarius

Question 18

Slave or employee of Libitinarius
Concerned with limited preservation
Hold the remains for about a week in state
Evidence of cavity evisceration and pickling for the rich

Answer 18

Pollinctores

Question 19

Master of Ceremonies

Subordinate to Libitinarius who took charge of all funeral professions

Answer 19

Designator

Question 20

Summoned the participants to a public Roman Funeral

Answer 20

Praeco

Question 21

A hired actor to portray the deceased during the funeral procession
Greet the mourners and thank those that attended

Answer 21

Buffoon

Question 22

What time of day were the majority of funeral processions held?

Answer 22

Night time, with a torchlight procession

Question 23

What time of day were high status funeral processions held?

Answer 23

Day time, still with torchbearers

Question 24

Where was a funeral oration held?

Answer 24

Forum

Question 25

Usually women hired for the funeral who shrieked and beat their breasts, tearing their hair and garments, and scratching their faces

Answer 25

Professional Mourners

Question 26

A triple ceremonial farewell or calling out of the dead as they circled the deceased three times

Answer 26

Conclamatio mortis

Question 27

Who extended municipal authority to include the public disposal of any Roman citizen who needed but could not afford a funeral

Answer 27

Constantine the Great

Question 28

Who replaced the Libitinarius?

Answer 28

the Decani

Question 29

Why was Libitinarius replaced?

Answer 29

He refused service to the poor

Question 30

Who would provide a bier, coffin, and grave without payment?

Answer 30

the Decani

Question 31

The Decani would provide a religious procession which included these

Answer 31

1 cross bearer
8 monks
3 Acolytes
Bier bearers

Question 32

Sumptuary laws in this period prohibited what?

Answer 32

Excessive spending and overcharging for funeral paraphernalia

Question 33

Constantine took over the burial societies and turned them into what?

Answer 33

Purgatorial Societies

Question 34

Purgatorial societies basically did what?

Answer 34

Collected offerings to save the sinner’s souls from purgatory

Question 35

Government by religion

Answer 35

Theocracy

Question 36

No difference between government and the majority religion

Answer 36

Theocracy

Question 37

Church state government dominated by the Roman Catholic Church with the Decani as bureaucrats

Answer 37

Thoecracy

Question 38

The emerging role of this was a major influence of Roman Burial Practices

Answer 38

The secular undertaker and the assignment of specific tasks