The Roman calendar, in particular the Julian form of the calendar during the reign of Caesar, was used as the basis for what is, globally, the most important calendar today. It evolved in a series of reforms and revolutions and many of its peculiar features, from the names of the months to the number of days, are still visible.

Preface vii

Map 1 Distribution of preserved calendars (or calendar fragments) of the fasti type from the first century BCE to the fifth century CE viii

Table 1 List of known copies of fasti ix

1 Time’s Social Dimension 1

2 Observations on the Roman fasti 6

2.1 A Republican Version 6

2.2 Forms and Functions 8

2.3 The fasti and the Birth of Augustan Epigraphy 14

2.4 The Question of the Archetype 21

3 Towards an Early History of the Roman Calendar 23

3.1 Notions of a Prehistoric Calendar 23

3.2 The Structure of the Month 24

3.3 Market Cycles 32

3.4 Modes of Dating 34

4 The Introduction of the Republican Calendar 38

4.1 Timing and Motivation 38

4.2 The Character and Significance of the Reform 41

5 The Written Calendar 44

5.1 Gnaeus Flavius 44

5.2 NP Days and Feast-names 50

5.3 Cultic and Linguistic Details 55

5.4 The Purpose of the fasti 58

5.5 The Law of Hortensius 59

5.6 Implications for the Historiography of Roman Religion 64

5.7 Variants on Stone and Paper 66

6 The Lex Acilia and the Problem of Pontifical Intercalation 68

6.1 The Nature of the Measures 68

6.2 The Ritually Correct Method of Intercalation 69

6.3 Problems of Intercalation 79

6.4 Regulating Intercalation by Means of Laws 83

7 Reinterpretation of the fasti in the Temple of the Muses 87

7.1 Marcus Fulvius Nobilior, Triumphator 87

7.2 Temple Dedications in the fasti 95

7.3 Ennius 105

7.4 All fasti are Fulvian fasti 108

8 From Republic to Empire 109

8.1 Caesar’s Calendar Reform 109

8.2 The Calendar as Collective Memory 121

8.3 Augustus and the Power of Dates 124

8.4 The Calendar as Roman Breviary 134

9 The Disappearance of Marble Calendars 140

10 Calendar Monopoly and Competition between Calendars 146

10.1 One Calendar 146

10.2 Coexisting and Competing Developments 153

10.3 Eras 156

10.4 The Calculation of Easter 157

10.5 Weekly Cycles 160

10.6 Fasti Christiani? 169

11 The Calendar in the Public Realm 175

Abbreviations 183

References 185

Sources Index 209

General Index 215

"It is excellent to see an updated and revised translation of Jörg Rüpke's fundamentally important study of the Roman calendar, one which keeps alive its profound learning and provocative originality."
Denis Feeney, Princeton University

"At last, thanks to Jörg Rüpke and David Richardson, we have a proper modern, historical account of the Roman calendar. A thoroughly revised and updated translation of Rüpke's earlier work, this work affects our understanding of virtually every activity at Rome mediated by time."
Clifford Ando, University of Chicago

"Rüpke's Roman Calendar offers a rich critique of received ideas about republican attitudes to time and the evolution of the calendar; it will surely provoke much radical re-thinking on major problems."
John North, London University College

"This is an excellent abridgment of Rüpke's standard work Kalender und Öffentlichkeit. In this historical survey, Rüpke discusses not only the technical details of the evolving Roman calendar but also its significance in the political and historical setting. The book is an essential resource for anyone interested in Roman civilization."
Karl Galinsky, University of Texas

The Roman calendar, in particular in the form of the Julian calendar of Julius Caesar, was used as the basis for what is, globally, the most important calendar today. This calendar evolved in a series of reforms and revolutions, and many of its peculiar features, from the name of the months to the number of days, are still visible. This book traces the history and the peculiar form taken by the calendar.

Offering new reconstructions of the critical stages of the technical, political, medial, and religious history of the Roman calendar, this book demands serious revisions to previous accounts and provides a definitive history of the Roman calendar. This new history enables a fresh understanding of the history of the Christian calendars and stimulates research on other calendars.

“It is excellent to see an updated and revised translation of Jörg Rüpke's fundamentally important study of the Roman calendar, one which keeps alive its profound learning and provocative originality.” – Denis Feeney, Princeton University

"At last, thanks to Jörg Rüpke and David Richardson, we have a proper modern, historical account of the Roman calendar.  A thoroughly revised and updated translation of Rüpke's earlier work, this work affects our understanding of virtually every activity at Rome mediated by time." – Clifford Ando, University of Chicago

“Rüpke's Roman Calendar offers a rich critique of received ideas about republican attitudes to time and the evolution of the calendar; it will surely provoke much radical re-thinking on major problems.” – John North, London University College

“This is an excellent abridgment of Rüpke’s standard work Kalender und Öffentlichkeit.  In this historical survey, Rüpke discusses not only the technical details of the evolving Roman calendar but also its significance in the political and historical setting.  The book is an essential resource for anyone interested in Roman civilization.” – Karl Galinsky, University of Texas

Preface 1 Time?s social dimension 2 Observations on the Roman fasti 3 Towards an early history of the Roman calendar 4 The introduction of the Republican calendar 5 The written calendar 6 The Acilian law and the problem of pontifical intercalation 7 Reinterpretation of the fasti in the temple of the Muses 8 From Republic to Empire 9 The disappearance of marble calendars 10 Calendar monopoly and competition between calendars 11 The calendar in the public realm Bibliography Indexes