From civic to ritual. The ritualization of institutional offices and roles in the Latin cities

Thinking about the incidence of the sacred in urbanism and in the making of urban form – and therefore of a complex society organisation – it may be noted that the analysis of some religious posts is inevitably linked to the examination of the origin and development of civic structures. So, also for ancient priesthoods the factor that makes their functions public, originating from a ‘pre-urban’ dimension with a previous role in a different social and political context, is the establishment of the State. Furthermore, in their development, religious and ritual functions have a huge impact on the political and institutional sphere. In this respect, the problem of the relationship between magistracies and priesthoods arises in a significant way. Through a case study from the Latin world, this contribution examines precisely that complicated phenomenon of interaction, focusing on the topic of the ‘sacralisation’ of institutional offices. In this regard the case of the dictatorship offers the best evidence for the problem of the historical process and meaning inherent in the process of the ‘sacraliszation’ of political roles. The function and role of the rex sacrorum is also important to keep in mind because it is relevant for investigating the evidence of ritual roles and the relationship with the more ancient sacra of the cities. This essay explores these topics in order to emphasize a specific aspect of the relationship between urbanism and ritualization, linked to the issue of government forms.