Cassius Dio and the Foreigners
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20066524 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Søren Lund Sørensen (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Pages | 76-91 |
| Publication date | 2016-01-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | CHAPTER |
| Venue | Cassius Dio (SOURCE_BOOK) |
| Publisher | Brill (PUBLISHER • NL) |
| DOI | 10.1163/9789004335318_006 |
| OpenAlex | W2736272700 |
| ISBN | 9789004335318 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
In his account of the introduction of the imperial cult in Asia Minor Cassius Dio implies that Octavian distinguished between Roman citizens and foreigners. While the Romans had to worship Julius Caesar and Dea Roma, the foreigners are said by Cassius Dio to have been entrusted with the worship of the ruler of the Romans. Cassius Dio’s description of these foreigners is somewhat nebulous, and this paper undertakes an investigation into their identity, arguing that Cassius Dio can only have been referring to the provincial assemblies, the so-called koina. Reviewing recent epigraphic material does, however, lead to the conclusion that Cassius Dio’s account of the genesis of the imperial cult is a gross distortion of historical facts, since no division between Romans and foreigners ever seems to have existed with regards to the imperial cult in Asia Minor. Rather, Roman citizens appear to have been involved in the cult from the outset
Ancient history · Art · Cult · Roman history · Ruler · Theology · Worship · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Biblical Studies and Interpretation · Classical Antiquity Studies · History · Philosophy
| Citations per year | 0.14 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2019 - 2019 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |