Nemoralia (id. aug. = August 13): The Sacred Grove of Diana, the Goddess of the Hunt

In this blog post, we will discuss the Roman Goddess of the hunt Diana. Like the Greek Goddess Artemis, She was most commonly depicted wearing a chitōn (ΧΙΤΩΝ) and sandals.

She is often accompanied by either a deer (Fig. ❶) or a dog (Fig. ❷) and almost always has a quiver slung over her right shoulder. In her left hand, She typically carries a recurve bow, though occasionally She carries one or two torches instead (like on this fresco).

Fig. ❶  "Artemis and the Stag", 1st century BCE～1st century CE, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (USA)

 

Fig. ❷  Diana and a dog on a relief, 1st century CE, Museum Valkhof Nijmegen (Netherlands)

In the middle of the hot summer month of August, the Ancient Romans would go to the sanctuary of Diana Nemorensis in the "Nemus Dianae" (“the Grove of Diana”)[I][II] which was located around Lake Nemi, 20km southeast of Rome.

Supplicants would go down to this sacred grove from the city carrying torches, their heads crowned with wreaths, to dedicate votive tablets (Latin: tabella), and possibly some kind of votive threads. [III]

The sanctuary at the Nemus Dianae was not a single temple, but rather what is called a “terrace sanctuary” with different shrines and temples at different heights of the slopes of the volcanic crater.

None of the temples are completely intact unfortunately.  

A terracotta votive shaped like a Tuscan temple has been found in the area, so it seems conceivable that at least one of the temples on the site was of this type. [IV]

Terracotta votives shaped like body parts were also found at the site. This may be linked to the alleged healing powers Diana Nemorensis, though it is unclear why a certain body part would be chosen by a supplicant. Perhaps the votive was meant to represent the part of their own body that needed healing. [V]

During the Nemoralia in mid-August hunting was not allowed. [VI] Remarkably, Diana is in charge of both helping hunters and protecting animals.

Women in particular seem to have been common among the supplicants [III][V], perhaps because Diana Nemorensis was associated with childbirth. [VI] Women traditionally washed their hair on the Nemoralia. [VII]

Slaves, both male and female, also participated in the ritual and were given the day off from work. [VII] The position of Rex Nemorensis, the priest in charge of the deity's sanctuary, was even reserved for run-away slaves. Each Rex Nemorensis had to kill his predecessor in order to take his position. [III][VI]

It is not clear whether this practice was limited to Nemi, but there seems to have been a purification ritual for youngsters as well where wine, fruit, cakes and a young goat were brought to DIANA in a procession as an expression of gratitude for the bounty of the year. [VIII]

An important cult image at the sanctuary at Nemi, which was likely made out of gold, [IX] appears on this coin as three separate statues. [X] This is quite different from the typical Greek depiction of Artemis, but slightly reminiscent of triform statues of Trivia (Greek: Hekate ΕΚΑΤΗ) with whom Diana was often associated.

In spite of this, the votive statuettes found at the site do depict Her in Her common guise as a huntress, rather than in her triple form. [V]

This is the shrine I put up for this year’s Neloralia. I should have used torches instead of candles, but I currently don’t own anything torch-like that is safe for use indoors. I hope I can think of something that looks better by next year’s Nemoralia, but for now, not burning down my house is still pretty high up on my priority list.

Sources:

[I] Statius, Silvae. book III, 1.60.

[II] Propertius. Eligies, book II, 32.10.

[III] Ovid. Fasti. book III, 264.

[IV] Lorenz, Katharina (2011) “The Temple of Diana at Nemi: Temple Model - Myth in the Greek and Roman Worlds” YouTube.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bavPYjECN5k (retrieved 11 August 2017): 04:00.].

[V] White, Donald et al. (2002) Guide to the Etruscan and Roman Worlds at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania: pp54-56.

[VI] Henriksén, Christer (2012) A Commentary on Martial, Epigrams, Book 9. Oxford: Oxford University Press: p272.

[VII] Plutarch. Quaestiones Romanae, 100.

[VIII] Grattius Faliscus. Cynegetica: 479-496.

[IX] Ovid. Heroides. 12.70

[X] Green, C.M.C. Roman Religion and the Cult of Diana at Aricia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press:p79.