SATURNALIA THREAD
pic.twitter.com/LN09HyjLOh
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more
saturnalia et sigillaricia were the original “Christmas presents” small gifts exchanged at parties or after saturnalia rituals.
Before we get too in depth with the minutia of saturnalia rituals and celebrations I think we need to talk about Saturn himself
Saturn, aka Kronos was an agricultural Roman god, a primordial deity who ruled the world before the ‘modern’ pantheon. His reign was in the golden age and Saturnalia hearkens back to this with its celebrations.pic.twitter.com/UkG5r6TAXZ
He is usually depicted as an old man with a long beard holding a scythe in one hand and an hourglass in the other. “Old Father Time” is one of his nicknames because the Greek deity that Saturn imitates is Kronos, god of Time.pic.twitter.com/iTC3MWxfRn
The rituals of Saturnalia were diverse and debauched. With a week dedicated to merrymaking and drunkenness the streets of Rome gave themselves over fully to the merry pomp.
Masters served their slaves, and a peasant or drunk was anointed as the King of Misrule, to dictate the festivities
At the final ritual of Saturnalia the king of misrule would find himself in a very different position for he would be offered as a sacrifice to Saturn himself
The themes at play in Saturnalia represent the passing of the elder gods and their milieu, alluding to the passing of the year, a celebration of each “golden year” Saturn is significant in this as he devours the past like he eats his own children.
His role in time represents the cyclic nature of the years, the aeternal pattern of death and rebirth. He is the dying old year and the baby new year.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.