- Pales
In
Roman mythology , Pales was a deity of shepherds, flocks and livestock. Regarded as a male by some sources and a female by others, and even possibly as a pair of deities (as "Pales" could be either singular or plural inLatin ).Pales' festival, called the
Parilia , was celebrated onApril 21 . Cattle were driven through bonfires on this day. Another festival to Pales, apparently dedicated "to the two Pales" ("Palibus duobus") was held onJuly 7 .Marcus Atilius Regulus built a temple to Pales inRome following his victory over theSalentini in267 BC . It is generally thought to have been located on thePalatine Hill , but, being a victory monument, it may have been located on the route of the triumphal procession, either on theCampus Martius or theAventine Hill .Pales was also the name of the "Ass-God" of ancient Cannan, Babylon and Egypt, where the ass-god was known as Set. Pales was a playful, bisexual deity, having the reproductive organs of both men and women. The references to the god and his/her cult can be found all over the biblical and ancient world-- Samson slew the Philistines with the jawbone of an ass. Jesus rode into Jerusalem on an Ass, and early images of the Hebrew Messiah show a man with an ass head crucified to a tree. Palestine is named for the god, as is the Paletine hill in Rome. The word "palace" also comes from the temples where the god was worshipped. The Festival of Palilia was appropriated by the Christian calendar into the Feast of St. George.
Pales is referenced in the
Tom Robbins 's book, "Skinny Legs and All," where a statue to the deity is erected by Boomer Petway.Pales is a band in Fayetteville, Arkansas: [http://www.myspace.com/palesband]
Pronunciation: PAW-lays
References
*Richardson, L. (1992). "A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome". Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press. (p. 282)
*Scullard, H.H. (1981). "Festivals and Ceremonies of the Roman Republic". London: Thames and Hudson. (p. 104–105)
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