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 In
Roman mythology, Janus was the god of gates, doors, doorways, beginnings, and
endings. His most apparent remnants in modern culture are his namesakes, the
month of January and the caretaker of doors and halls: Janitor.
> > > Imagery
Though he was usually depicted with two faces looking in opposite directions
(Janus Geminus (twin Janus) or Bifrons), in some places he was Janus Quadrifrons
(the four-faced).
His two faces (originally, one was always bearded, one clean-shaven; later both
bearded) originally represented the sun and the moon, and he was usually shown
with a key. The two-faced image of Janus was often depicted on coins of the
Roman Republic. January is named after him.
> > > Patronage
Janus was frequently used to symbolize change and transitions such as the
progression of future to past, of one condition to another, of one vision to
another, the growing up of young people, and of one universe to another. He was
also known as the figure representing time because he could see into the past
with one face and into the future with the other. Hence, Janus was worshipped at
the beginnings of the harvest and planting times, as well as marriages, births
and other beginnings. He was representative of the middle ground between
barbarity and civilization, rural country and urban cities, and youth and
adulthood.
> > > Myths
> > > Carna
His ability to see both forwards and backwards at the same time aided him in his
pursuit of the nymph Carna whom he gave power over door hinges as a reward for
her favours.
> > > Other myths
Janus was supposed to have come from Thessaly in Greece and he shared a kingdom
with Camese in Latium. They had many children, including Tiberinus. Janus and
his later wife, Juturna, were the parents of Fontus. Another wife was named
Jana.
As the sole ruler of Latium, Janus heralded the Golden Age, introducing money,
laws and agriculture (making him a culture hero).
When Romulus and his men kidnapped the [Sabine] women, Janus caused a hot spring
to erupt, causing the would-be attackers to flee. In honor of this, the doors to
his temples were kept open during war so that he could easily intervene. The
doors and gates were closed during peace.
Because he was the god of the door and hinges he was one the guardians of the
Greek gods' treasures. From his name, we derive the English word janitor,
meaning doorman.
> > > Origins
The Romans associated Janus with the Etruscan deity Ani. However, he was one of
the few Roman gods who had no ready-made counterpart, or analogous mythology. We
can find in Greece Janus-like heads of gods related to Hermes, perhaps forming a
compound god: Hermathena (a herm of Athena), Hermares, Hermaphroditus,
Hermanubis, Hermalcibiades, and so on. In the case of these compounds it is
disputed whether they indicated a herm with the head of Athena, or with a
Janus-like head of both Hermes and Athena, or a figure compounded from both
deities.
The Roman Republic was the phase of the
ancient
Roman civilization characterized by a
republican
form of government; a period which began with the overthrow of the Roman
monarchy, c. 510 BC, and lasted over 450 years until its
subversion, through a series of
civil wars, into the
Principate
form of government and the Imperial period.
The Roman Republic was governed by a
complex constitution, which centered on the principles of a separation of
powers and checks and balances. The
evolution of the constitution was heavily influenced by the struggle between
the aristocracy and the average Roman. Early in its history, the republic was
controlled by an aristocracy of individuals who could trace their ancestry back
to the founding of the republic. Over time, the laws that allowed these
individuals to dominate the government were repealed, and the result was the
emergence of a new aristocracy which depended on the structure of society,
rather than the law, to maintain its dominance. Thus, only a revolution could
overthrow this new aristocracy.
Rome also saw its territory expand during this period, from central Italy to
the entire Mediterranean world. During the first two centuries, Rome expanded to
the point of dominating Italy. During the next century, Rome grew to dominate
North Africa, Spain, Greece, and what is now southern France. During the last
two centuries of the Roman Republic, Rome grew to dominate the rest of modern
France, as well as much of the east. By this point, however, its republican
political machinery was finally crushed under the weight of imperialism.
The precise event which signaled the transition of the Roman Republic into
the
Roman Empire is a matter of interpretation. Historians have variously
proposed the appointment of
Julius Caesar as perpetual dictator (44 BC), the
Battle of Actium (2
September, 31 BC), and the
Roman
Senate's grant of
Octavian's
extraordinary powers under the
first settlement (January
16, 27 BC), as candidates for the defining pivotal
event. |
