Neptune

The Roman God of Sea.

**Neptune**, the Roman god of freshwater and the sea, is the counterpart of the Greek god Poseidon. In Greek-inspired tradition, he is a brother of Jupiter and Pluto, who preside over heaven, earth, and the seas. Neptune is associated with freshwater springs before the sea and was worshipped by the Romans as a god of horses, as Neptunus equestris. His wife, Salacia, is his wife. Roman mosaics, particularly in North Africa, were influenced by Hellenistic conventions. Constantly fighting against the Leviathan.

## Background

Neptune's theology is influenced by his association with the Greek god Poseidon, who was later linked to a Roman deity. The lectisternium of 399 BC suggests that the Greek figures of Poseidon, Artemis, and Heracles were worshipped in Rome as Neptune, Diana, and Hercules. Neptune may have been conflated with a Proto-Indo-European freshwater deity, as the Romans may have reused the theology of a previous freshwater god in their worship of Neptune. Servius names Neptune as the god of rivers, springs, and waters, possibly paralleling the Irish god Nechtan. Neptune has been associated with other Roman deities, such as Portunus as the god of naval victories and Salacia as the goddess of saltwater. He was also considered the legendary progenitor god of the Falisci, joining Mars, Janus, Saturn, and Jupiter as the deific father of a Latin tribe.

### Neptunalia

Neptunalia, the Roman festival of Neptune, was held during summer on July 23. The festival, which included tree-branch shelters, suggests Neptune was a god of water sources during drought and heat. The ancient Roman calendar set the feriae of Neptunus on July 23, followed by the Lucaria festival of the grove and the Furrinalia festival of July 25. These festivals were connected to water during summer heat and drought, when freshwater sources were lowest. The Lucaria festival focused on clearing overgrown bushes, while Neptunalia focused on conservation and draining superficial waters. The Furrinalia festival, sacred to Furrina, was held under branch huts in woods, where participants drank spring water and wine to escape the heat. The festival also included an added context of agricultural fertility, as Neptune received a bull sacrifice.

### Temples

Neptune had only one temple in Rome. It stood near the Circus Flaminius, the Roman racetrack in the southern part of the Campus Martius, and dates back to at least 206 BC. The temple was restored out by Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus c. 40 BC, an event depicted on a coin struck by the consul. Within the temple was a sculpture of a marine group by Scopas Minor. The Basilica Neptuni was later built on the Campus Martius, and was dedicated by Agrippa in honor of the naval victory of Actium. This basilica supplanted the older temple, which had replaced an ancient altar.

### Sacrifices

Neptune is one of only four Roman gods to whom it was considered appropriate to sacrifice a bull. The other three were Apollo, Mars, and Jupiter, although Vulcan has also been depicted with the offering of a red bull and a red-bull calf. If an incorrect offering was presented, either inadvertently or due to necessity, additional propitiation was required to avoid divine retribution. This type of offering implied a stricter connection between the deity and the world.

### Paredrae

Paredrae are entities that accompany a god, representing the fundamental aspects or powers of that god. With Hellenic influence, these paredrae came to be considered separate deities and consorts of their associated god. Ancient and modern scholars have discussed Salacia and Venilia, with Salacia connected to salum (sea) and Venilia to ventus (wind). St. Augustine examined these entities, questioning how they could also be the retreating waves.

Servius wrote about Salacia and Venilia in his commentary on the Aeneid, stating that they were the same entity. Modern scholars like Dumézil and Bloch and Schilling focus on the direct, concrete, limited value and functions of water, with Salacia representing the forceful, violent aspect of gushing and overflowing water and Venilia the tranquil, gentle aspect of still water.

Preller, Fowler, Petersmann, and Takács attribute Neptune's broader significance as a god of universal worldly fertility, particularly relevant to agriculture and human reproduction. They interpret Salacia as personifying lust, while Venilia is related to venia, ingratiating attraction, connected with love and the desire for reproduction.

Motherhood myths suggest that Salacia would parallel Thetis as the mother of Achilles, and Venilia would be the mother of Turnus and Iuturna by Daunus (king of the Rutulians). Venilia was also the partner of Janus, with whom she mothered the nymph Canens (loved by Picus). These mythical data underline the reproductive function envisaged in the figures of Neptune's paredrae, particularly that of Venilia, in childbirth and motherhood.

## Story

Before being known as the god of the sea, Poseidon was associated with horses and may have been depicted in equine form. This connection reflects the violent nature of Poseidon, the earth-shaker, and the linkage of horses and springs. Neptune, on the other hand, has no direct connection with horses. The Roman deity Consus was associated with the horse, and his underground altar was located in the valley of the Circus Maximus at the foot of the Palatine. On the summer Consualia (August 21), it was customary to bring horses and mules, crowned with flowers, in procession and hold equine races in the Circus. The festival also traditionally reenacted the abduction of the Sabine (and Latin) women, reflecting the sexual license characteristic of such festivals.

According to Dumézil, the horse has a much-different symbolic value in the theologies of Poseidon and Consus. According to Tertullian, Consus was the god who advised Romulus on the abduction of the Sabines. Perhaps influenced by Poseidon Ίππιoς, Consus (whose festival included horse races) was reinterpreted as Neptunus equestris, and for his underground altar, he was identified with Poseidon Έvoσίχθωv.

Martianus Capella places Neptune and Consus together in region X of Heaven, possibly following an old interpretatio graeca of Consus or reflecting an Etruscan idea of a chthonic Neptune. The Etruscans were also fond of horse races.