I percorsi delle processioni nella Roma antica: ludi saeculares e funerali imperiali

Whilst religious ceremonies in ancient Rome have been amply studied, little attention has hitherto been paid to their spatial context. In this essay the relationship between the two is explored by focusing on the processions carried out in the context of the ludi saeculares and in particular on those recorded from the years 17 BC and 204 AD. Through an in-depth analysis of the relevant ancient sources, the author traces the trajectories of these processions. The author concludes that they coincide, to a significant degree, with those of triumphal processions and with the routes followed by imperial funerals. The origins of the various processions are traced, and an explanation for this coincidence is explored in the context of the rise of the early Republic.