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Books by Eric Orlin

The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-v... more The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-volume reference work offering authoritative coverage of ancient religions in the Mediterranean world. Chronologically, the volume’s scope extends from pre-historical antiquity in the third millennium B.C.E. through the rise of Islam in the seventh century C.E. An interdisciplinary approach draws out the common issues and elements between and among religious traditions in the Mediterranean basin. Key features of the volume include:
Detailed maps of the Mediterranean World, ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, and the Hellenistic World
A comprehensive timeline of major events, innovations, and individuals, divided by region to provide both a diachronic and pan-Mediterranean, synchronic view
A broad geographical range including western Asia, northern Africa, and southern Europe.

This encyclopedia will serve as a key point of reference for all students and scholars interested in ancient Mediterranean culture and society.

Religion is a particularly useful field within which to study Roman self-definition, for the Roma... more Religion is a particularly useful field within which to study Roman self-definition, for the Romans considered themselves to be the most religious of all peoples and ascribed their imperial success to their religiosity. This study builds on the observation that the Romans were remarkably open to outside influences to explore how installing foreign religious elements as part of their own religious system affected their notions of what it meant to be Roman. The inclusion of so many foreign elements posed difficulties for defining a sense of Romanness at the very moment when a territorial definition was becoming obsolete. Using models drawn from anthropology, this book demonstrates that Roman religious activity beginning in the middle Republic (early third century B.C.E.) contributed to redrawing the boundaries of Romanness. The methods by which the Romans absorbed cults and priests and their development of practices in regard to expiations and the celebration of ludi allowed them to recreate a clear sense of identity, one that could include the peoples they had conquered. While this identity faced further challenges during the civil wars of the Late Republic, the book suggests that Roman openness remained a vital part of their religious behavior during this time. Foreign Cults in Rome concludes with a brief look at the reforms of the first emperor Augustus, whose activity can be understood in light of Republican activity, and whose actions laid the foundation for further adaptation under the Empire.

The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-v... more The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-volume reference work offering authoritative coverage of ancient religions in the Mediterranean world. Chronologically, the volume’s scope extends from pre-historical antiquity in the third millennium B.C.E. through the rise of Islam in the seventh century C.E. An interdisciplinary approach draws out the common issues and elements between and among religious traditions in the Mediterranean basin. Key features of the volume include:

Detailed maps of the Mediterranean World, ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, and the Hellenistic World

A comprehensive timeline of major events, innovations, and individuals, divided by region to provide both a diachronic and pan-Mediterranean, synchronic view

A broad geographical range including western Asia, northern Africa, and southern Europe

This encyclopedia will serve as a key point of reference for all students and scholars interested in ancient Mediterranean culture and society.

Articles by Eric Orlin

Memory in Ancient Rome and Early Christianity (Karl Galinsky ed.), Jan 2016

The building projects of the emperor Augustus have long been the subject of both popular fascinat... more The building projects of the emperor Augustus have long been the subject of both popular fascination and scholarly attention, and rightly so. From the time of his return to Rome following his triumph over Mark Antony until the dedication of the temple of Mars Ultor in the Forum of Augustus, scarcely a year passed without the construction or reconstruction of a significant monument. These projects affected virtually every part of the city, from the Palatine and Capitoline hills in the heart of the city to the Aventine on the south and the Campus Martius on the north. Augustus clearly took pride in his accomplishments, as evidenced not so much by the (possibly apocryphal) story of claiming to find Rome a city of brick and leaving it a city of marble, but by his own words: the emperor devoted three full sections of the Res Gestae, his own accounting of his accomplishments, to his building efforts in the city, including his oft-cited claim that “consul for the sixth time I rebuilt eighty-two temples of the gods in the city by the authority of the senate, omitting nothing which ought to have been rebuilt at that time.” These building projects have often been studied, either individually or as part of a “program”, to shed light on various aspects of the Augustan era, and these studies have brought greater awareness of how art and other visual media can inform our understanding of a particular period. What has been overlooked, however, are the implications of the reconstruction program for how the Romans remembered their past. Focusing on the area of the Circus Flaminius in the southern Campus Martius, this paper reveals how these reconstructions dramatically reshaped Roman memory, helping to create a focus on the figure of the emperor as the central pillar of Roman identity.

Rome and Religion: A Cross-Disciplinary Dialogue on the Imperial Cult, 2011

American Journal of Philology 129, 2008

Octavian's decision in 28 B.C.E. to ban Egyptian cults from within the pomerium was not a sign of... more Octavian's decision in 28 B.C.E. to ban Egyptian cults from within the pomerium was not a sign of hostility to foreign cults, especially since the emperor himself arranged for the restoration of those shrines outside the city's religious boundary. Rather, his action served to reassert the Roman openness to foreign religions while at the same time underlining the distinctions between Roman and foreign religious practices. Using the pomerium to demarcate a clear boundary between Roman and non-Roman helped to reconstruct the sense of Roman identity that had been shattered by the civil wars of the previous fifty years.

Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome 47 , 2002

Studies in Latin Literature and Roman History Vol. X, , 2000

Reference Works by Eric Orlin

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, 2012

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, 2012

Encyclopedia of Religion, 2005.

A Companion to Roman Religion, 2007

Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Archaeology , 2013

Conference Papers by Eric Orlin

SCS/AIA Annual Meeting, 2019

The Ludi Saeculares have long been viewed as a key symbolic moment in the reign of Augustus. Foll... more The Ludi Saeculares have long been viewed as a key symbolic moment in the reign of Augustus. Following the significant experimentation in many areas of political, social and cultural life in Rome, in particular the passage of the lex Julia de maritandis ordinibus in 18 BCE, the Games have often been considered to mark a transition to a period of consolidation. Scholarship on the Games is particularly rich because scholars have access both to Horace’s hymn composed for the occasion and a huge inscription (ILS 5050) found in the Campus Martius that records both provisions for the festival as well as elements of the ritual itself. While the inscription has been plumbed for insights both into Roman religious practice and the relationship of the imperial family to the Senate and the state (Galinsky, 1998; Putnam, 2000; Thomas, 2011), the nature of the inscription itself has seldom been directly explored. This paper explores the inscription from the perspective of prospective memory, arguing that the inscription served to shape future celebrations of the ludi saeculares, rather than merely commemorating the Augustan games.

Scholars of Roman religion have often grappled with the notion of foreign religious practices, of... more Scholars of Roman religion have often grappled with the notion of foreign religious practices, often seeing such cults as Bacchus as antithetical to Roman practice. The Magna Mater (Kybele) has been a particularly fruitful locus of analysis, both coming from overseas and with many practices that provide a stark contrast to typical Roman practice. But one challenge has been that while Roman texts often emphasize exotic or foreign-seeming elements in these cults, they do not often use the term ‘foreign’ as a term to describe such cults or practices, leaving moderns to develop this term as a heuristic category. However, there are several texts that do use such language or attempt to develop an understanding of the term ‘foreign’. The best known of these is Verrius Flaccus who offered a definition of foreign rites in the Augustan period. This paper will first demonstrate that Flaccus’ definition is not a descriptive term, but suggests an ideological approach to the question of foreignness. In fact, Flaccus’ approach fits neatly into John Scheid’s discussion of the “Greek rite” (Graecus ritus) in Rome, where the word Greek may be considered as a stand-in for foreign; Scheid’s observation is that the cults using the Greek rite were in fact quite Roman. Flaccus’ definition similarly highlights the artificiality of the difference being constructed to serve a particular ideological end. This paper will explore how Flaccus’ attempt to ‘define’ the term fits into this broader pattern, also seen in the work of Valerius Maximus, during early Roman empire, and suggest that identifying “Roman” and “foreign” practices served as means to re-unite Roman (and Italian) society in the wake of the Roman civil wars.

Web Publication by Eric Orlin

TheTorah.com, 2018

The story of the Maccabees is known as a battle between traditionalists and assimilationists, the... more The story of the Maccabees is known as a battle between traditionalists and assimilationists, the latter supported by the Seleucid kings. But what do the books of 1 and 2 Maccabees, with their elaborate descriptions of alliances and power plays, really tell us about the revolt?

The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-v... more The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-volume reference work offering authoritative coverage of ancient religions in the Mediterranean world. Chronologically, the volume’s scope extends from pre-historical antiquity in the third millennium B.C.E. through the rise of Islam in the seventh century C.E. An interdisciplinary approach draws out the common issues and elements between and among religious traditions in the Mediterranean basin. Key features of the volume include:
Detailed maps of the Mediterranean World, ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, and the Hellenistic World
A comprehensive timeline of major events, innovations, and individuals, divided by region to provide both a diachronic and pan-Mediterranean, synchronic view
A broad geographical range including western Asia, northern Africa, and southern Europe.

This encyclopedia will serve as a key point of reference for all students and scholars interested in ancient Mediterranean culture and society.

Religion is a particularly useful field within which to study Roman self-definition, for the Roma... more Religion is a particularly useful field within which to study Roman self-definition, for the Romans considered themselves to be the most religious of all peoples and ascribed their imperial success to their religiosity. This study builds on the observation that the Romans were remarkably open to outside influences to explore how installing foreign religious elements as part of their own religious system affected their notions of what it meant to be Roman. The inclusion of so many foreign elements posed difficulties for defining a sense of Romanness at the very moment when a territorial definition was becoming obsolete. Using models drawn from anthropology, this book demonstrates that Roman religious activity beginning in the middle Republic (early third century B.C.E.) contributed to redrawing the boundaries of Romanness. The methods by which the Romans absorbed cults and priests and their development of practices in regard to expiations and the celebration of ludi allowed them to recreate a clear sense of identity, one that could include the peoples they had conquered. While this identity faced further challenges during the civil wars of the Late Republic, the book suggests that Roman openness remained a vital part of their religious behavior during this time. Foreign Cults in Rome concludes with a brief look at the reforms of the first emperor Augustus, whose activity can be understood in light of Republican activity, and whose actions laid the foundation for further adaptation under the Empire.

The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-v... more The Routledge Encyclopedia of Ancient Mediterranean Religions is the first comprehensive single-volume reference work offering authoritative coverage of ancient religions in the Mediterranean world. Chronologically, the volume’s scope extends from pre-historical antiquity in the third millennium B.C.E. through the rise of Islam in the seventh century C.E. An interdisciplinary approach draws out the common issues and elements between and among religious traditions in the Mediterranean basin. Key features of the volume include:

Detailed maps of the Mediterranean World, ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, and the Hellenistic World

A comprehensive timeline of major events, innovations, and individuals, divided by region to provide both a diachronic and pan-Mediterranean, synchronic view

A broad geographical range including western Asia, northern Africa, and southern Europe

This encyclopedia will serve as a key point of reference for all students and scholars interested in ancient Mediterranean culture and society.

Memory in Ancient Rome and Early Christianity (Karl Galinsky ed.), Jan 2016

The building projects of the emperor Augustus have long been the subject of both popular fascinat... more The building projects of the emperor Augustus have long been the subject of both popular fascination and scholarly attention, and rightly so. From the time of his return to Rome following his triumph over Mark Antony until the dedication of the temple of Mars Ultor in the Forum of Augustus, scarcely a year passed without the construction or reconstruction of a significant monument. These projects affected virtually every part of the city, from the Palatine and Capitoline hills in the heart of the city to the Aventine on the south and the Campus Martius on the north. Augustus clearly took pride in his accomplishments, as evidenced not so much by the (possibly apocryphal) story of claiming to find Rome a city of brick and leaving it a city of marble, but by his own words: the emperor devoted three full sections of the Res Gestae, his own accounting of his accomplishments, to his building efforts in the city, including his oft-cited claim that “consul for the sixth time I rebuilt eighty-two temples of the gods in the city by the authority of the senate, omitting nothing which ought to have been rebuilt at that time.” These building projects have often been studied, either individually or as part of a “program”, to shed light on various aspects of the Augustan era, and these studies have brought greater awareness of how art and other visual media can inform our understanding of a particular period. What has been overlooked, however, are the implications of the reconstruction program for how the Romans remembered their past. Focusing on the area of the Circus Flaminius in the southern Campus Martius, this paper reveals how these reconstructions dramatically reshaped Roman memory, helping to create a focus on the figure of the emperor as the central pillar of Roman identity.

Rome and Religion: A Cross-Disciplinary Dialogue on the Imperial Cult, 2011

American Journal of Philology 129, 2008

Octavian's decision in 28 B.C.E. to ban Egyptian cults from within the pomerium was not a sign of... more Octavian's decision in 28 B.C.E. to ban Egyptian cults from within the pomerium was not a sign of hostility to foreign cults, especially since the emperor himself arranged for the restoration of those shrines outside the city's religious boundary. Rather, his action served to reassert the Roman openness to foreign religions while at the same time underlining the distinctions between Roman and foreign religious practices. Using the pomerium to demarcate a clear boundary between Roman and non-Roman helped to reconstruct the sense of Roman identity that had been shattered by the civil wars of the previous fifty years.

Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome 47 , 2002

Studies in Latin Literature and Roman History Vol. X, , 2000

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, 2012

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, 2012

Encyclopedia of Religion, 2005.

A Companion to Roman Religion, 2007

Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Archaeology , 2013

SCS/AIA Annual Meeting, 2019

The Ludi Saeculares have long been viewed as a key symbolic moment in the reign of Augustus. Foll... more The Ludi Saeculares have long been viewed as a key symbolic moment in the reign of Augustus. Following the significant experimentation in many areas of political, social and cultural life in Rome, in particular the passage of the lex Julia de maritandis ordinibus in 18 BCE, the Games have often been considered to mark a transition to a period of consolidation. Scholarship on the Games is particularly rich because scholars have access both to Horace’s hymn composed for the occasion and a huge inscription (ILS 5050) found in the Campus Martius that records both provisions for the festival as well as elements of the ritual itself. While the inscription has been plumbed for insights both into Roman religious practice and the relationship of the imperial family to the Senate and the state (Galinsky, 1998; Putnam, 2000; Thomas, 2011), the nature of the inscription itself has seldom been directly explored. This paper explores the inscription from the perspective of prospective memory, arguing that the inscription served to shape future celebrations of the ludi saeculares, rather than merely commemorating the Augustan games.

Scholars of Roman religion have often grappled with the notion of foreign religious practices, of... more Scholars of Roman religion have often grappled with the notion of foreign religious practices, often seeing such cults as Bacchus as antithetical to Roman practice. The Magna Mater (Kybele) has been a particularly fruitful locus of analysis, both coming from overseas and with many practices that provide a stark contrast to typical Roman practice. But one challenge has been that while Roman texts often emphasize exotic or foreign-seeming elements in these cults, they do not often use the term ‘foreign’ as a term to describe such cults or practices, leaving moderns to develop this term as a heuristic category. However, there are several texts that do use such language or attempt to develop an understanding of the term ‘foreign’. The best known of these is Verrius Flaccus who offered a definition of foreign rites in the Augustan period. This paper will first demonstrate that Flaccus’ definition is not a descriptive term, but suggests an ideological approach to the question of foreignness. In fact, Flaccus’ approach fits neatly into John Scheid’s discussion of the “Greek rite” (Graecus ritus) in Rome, where the word Greek may be considered as a stand-in for foreign; Scheid’s observation is that the cults using the Greek rite were in fact quite Roman. Flaccus’ definition similarly highlights the artificiality of the difference being constructed to serve a particular ideological end. This paper will explore how Flaccus’ attempt to ‘define’ the term fits into this broader pattern, also seen in the work of Valerius Maximus, during early Roman empire, and suggest that identifying “Roman” and “foreign” practices served as means to re-unite Roman (and Italian) society in the wake of the Roman civil wars.

TheTorah.com, 2018

The story of the Maccabees is known as a battle between traditionalists and assimilationists, the... more The story of the Maccabees is known as a battle between traditionalists and assimilationists, the latter supported by the Seleucid kings. But what do the books of 1 and 2 Maccabees, with their elaborate descriptions of alliances and power plays, really tell us about the revolt?