ancient Roman religion Religion in ancient Rome consisted of varying imperial and provincial religious practices, which were followed both by the people of Rome as well as those who were brought under its rule. The Romans thought of themselves as highly religious, ...

, the god Consus was the protector of grains. He was represented by a grain seed. His altar ''(

ara ARA may refer to: Media and the arts * American-Romanian Academy of Arts and Sciences * '' Artistička Radna Akcija'', compilation album released in former Yugoslavia * Associate of the Royal Academy, denoting membership in the British Royal Acad ...

)'' was located at the first ''meta'' of the

Circus Maximus The Circus Maximus (Latin for "largest circus"; Italian: ''Circo Massimo'') is an ancient Roman chariot-racing stadium and mass entertainment venue in Rome, Italy. In the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills, it was the first and l ...

. It was either underground, or according to other sources, covered with earth, which was swept off during the two

Consualia The Consualia or ''Consuales Ludi'' was the name of two ancient Roman festivals in honor of Consus, a tutelary deity of the harvest and stored grain. ''Consuales Ludi'' harvest festivals were held on August 21, Plutarch. "Life if Romulus", in ...

, his festivals on August 21, December 15, and on July 7 when the pontiffs held a sacrifice there. He was thus a

chthonic The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...

god. The '' Flamen Quirinalis'' and the Vestals officiated at his rites.

Etymology

The

etymology Etymology () The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words ...

of the name ''Consus'' is uncertain. It may be of Etruscan or

Sabine The Sabines (; lat, Sabini; it, Sabini, all exonyms) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines di ...

origin. In the

folk etymology Folk etymology (also known as popular etymology, analogical reformation, reanalysis, morphological reanalysis or etymological reinterpretation) is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more famili ...

of antiquity, the name was related to the Latin verb ''conserere'', "to sow," as was the title of the goddess

Ops In ancient Roman religion, Ops or ''Opis'' (Latin: "Plenty") was a fertility deity and earth goddess of Sabine origin. Her equivalent in Greek mythology was Rhea. Iconography In Ops' statues and coins, she is figured sitting down, as Chthon ...

as ''Consivia'' or ''Consiva''. The late Republican theologian

Varro Marcus Terentius Varro (; 116–27 BC) was a Roman polymath and a prolific author. He is regarded as ancient Rome's greatest scholar, and was described by Petrarch as "the third great light of Rome" (after Vergil and Cicero). He is sometimes calle ...

said that the Consualia were named for Consus.

G. Dumézil G is the seventh letter of the Latin alphabet. G may also refer to: Places * Gabon, international license plate code G * Glasgow, UK postal code G * Eastern Quebec, Canadian postal prefix G * Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia, ...

and G. Capdeville consider verb ''condere'', "to store", to be the best etymology: ''Consus'' would be an archaic verbal noun denoting the action of storing grain. Capdeville states that ''Consus'' cannot be related to ''conserere'' and adjective ''consivius'', and advances the hypothesis that ''condere'' might have to be taken in the meaning of "to found" or "establish". Ancient sources, Festus included, were very fond of the similar sound of ''Consus'' and ''consilium'', and allegorically interpreted his name as relating to "council" or "assembly" (''consilium''). Moreover,

Tertullian Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...

reports that on one of the ''metae'' of the

circus maximus The Circus Maximus (Latin for "largest circus"; Italian: ''Circo Massimo'') is an ancient Roman chariot-racing stadium and mass entertainment venue in Rome, Italy. In the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills, it was the first and l ...

an inscription read: "''Consus consilio, Mars duello, Lares coillo po entes'". which may be archaic considering ''co llo'' and external factors. This is close to "hide" too cf. ''abdere, (abs)condere''. This derivation is certain, but on the other hand, as de Vaan writes on the etymology of ''consilium'', it is very uncertain whence comes the head word, ''consulere-solere'', although very probably not from ''con-sideo''.

Function and associations

The festivals of Ops ( Opiconsivia or Opalia) followed Consus' closely, being held every August 25 and December 19, at the time of reaping and the seeding of crops. Consus became a god associated with secret conferences. The grammarian Servius says that Consus is the god of councils. This fact stems from the role played by Consus in the abduction of the Sabine women, which took place on the occasion of the ''Consualia aestiva'' and was considered to have been advised by the god himself. This power of hidden counselling held by Consus seems to be related to the concept expressed by Dionysius and Plutarch that he is the "holder" of the Earth, an idea that makes of him a parallel to

Neptune Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and the farthest known planet in the Solar System. It is the fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 time ...

. So although it is certain that ''condere'' and ''consulere'' are from two different roots, it looks the character of Consus as hidden master of the Earth was at the basis of the identification with

, as well as the strict affinity of the two gods with the horse. According to G. Capdeville, it was a customary event that games were held at the foundation of a new settlement. These were connected with rituals that included athletic games such as footraces and marriage games along with invitations to settle in the new town: He mentions the instances of

Caeculus In Roman mythology, Caeculus (meaning "little blind boy", from ''caecus'' "blind")Grimalp. 83/ref> was a son of Vulcan, and the legendary founder of Praeneste (modern Palestrina). King Caeculus appears in Book VII of Virgil's ''Aeneid'' as an ally ...

at Praeneste and other settlements in Crete (

Dreros Dreros ( grc, Δρῆρος), also (representing Modern Greek pronunciation) Driros, near Neapoli in the regional unit of Lasithi, Crete, is a post-Minoan archaeological site, 16 km northwest of Agios Nikolaos. Known only by a chance re ...

, Hierapytna, Praisos, Lyttos,

Knossos Knossos (also Cnossos, both pronounced ; grc, Κνωσός, Knōsós, ; Linear B: ''Ko-no-so'') is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city. Settled as early as the Neolithic period, the na ...

). These events all had a religious meaning. In Crete as well as in Rome it looks the god involved was Vulcan (), i.e. the Cretan ''megas Kouros'', later interpreted as

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek relig ...

. In Rome the relationship of Vulcan with Consus is apparent in the dates of their festivals and the fact that the ''flamen volcanalis'' officiated at the

Calends The calends or kalends ( la, kalendae) is the first day of every month in the Roman calendar. The English word "calendar" is derived from this word. Use The Romans called the first day of every month the ''calends'', signifying the start of a ...

of May the sacrifice to

Bona Dea Bona Dea (; 'Good Goddess') was a goddess in ancient Roman religion. She was associated with chastity and fertility in Roman women, healing, and the protection of the state and people of Rome. According to Roman literary sources, she was brought ...

. Consus is perhaps to be identified with "Equestrian Neptune" ('' Neptunus Equestris''). Mule or horse races were the main event of the festival. During the festival horses and mules were garlanded with flowers, and given a rest from work. This fact is ascribed by Capdeville to the fact that

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as ...

was the successor of the unknown god of the Arcadian Hippocrateia mentioned by

Dionysius of Halicarnassus Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary styl ...

, who himself was perhaps the successor of a horse god. A close connection of Consus with the two

Pales In ancient Roman religion, Pales was a deity of shepherds, flocks and livestock. Regarded as male by some sources and female by others, ''Pales'' can be either singular or plural in Latin, and refers at least once to a pair of deities. Pales' fes ...

and of both with the horse looks apparent.

References

{{Authority control Agricultural gods Roman gods Horse deities