Sortes (ancient Rome)
Encyclopedia
Sortes were a frequent method of divination
among the ancient Romans
. The method involved the drawing of lots
(sortes) to obtain knowledge of future events: in many of the ancient Italian temples the will of the gods was consulted in this way, as at Praeneste and Caere
.
These sortes or lots were usually little tablets or counters, made of wood or other materials, and were commonly thrown into a sitella or urn
, filled with water. The lots were sometimes thrown like dice. The name of "sortes" was in fact given to anything used to determine chances, and was also applied to any verbal response of an oracle.
Various things were written upon the lots according to circumstances, as for instance the names of the persons using them. It seems to have been a favorite practice in later times to write the verses of illustrious poets upon little tablets, and to draw them out of the urn like other lots, the verses which a person thus obtained being supposed to be applicable to him (see Sortes Homerica
and Sortes Virgilianae
, lots created from verses of Homer
and Virgil
).
In the Biblical
account of the prophet Jonah
, he is thrown into the sea and swallowed by the whale after the sailors on the ship cast lots to detirmine the guilty one who had brought about the storm. It was also the practice to consult the poets in the same way as Muslims
do the Koran and Hafiz, and many Christian
s the Bible
, namely, by opening the book at random and applying the first passage that struck the eye to a person's own immediate circumstances. This practice was very common among the early Christians, who substituted the Bible and the Psalter
for Homer
and Virgil
. Many church councils repeatedly condemned these Sortes Sanctorum
(sacred lots), as they were called.
The Sibylline books
were probably also consulted in this way. Those who foretold future events by lots were called Sortilegi.
The sortes conviviales were sealed tablets, which were sold at entertainments, and upon being opened or unsealed entitled the purchaser to things of very unequal value. They were therefore a kind of lottery
.
Divination
Divination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic standardized process or ritual...
among the ancient Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
. The method involved the drawing of lots
Cleromancy
Cleromancy is a form of divination using sortition, casting of lots, or casting bones or stones, in which an outcome is determined by means that normally would be considered random, such as the rolling of dice, but are sometimes believed to reveal the will of God, or other supernatural entities.-In...
(sortes) to obtain knowledge of future events: in many of the ancient Italian temples the will of the gods was consulted in this way, as at Praeneste and Caere
Caere
Caere is the Latin name given by the Romans to one of the larger cities of Southern Etruria, the modern Cerveteri, approximately 50-60 kilometres north-northwest of Rome. To the Etruscans it was known as Cisra and to the Greeks as Agylla...
.
These sortes or lots were usually little tablets or counters, made of wood or other materials, and were commonly thrown into a sitella or urn
Situla
Situla is the Latin for bucket, and can mean* situla , a bucket-like vessel, usually of bronze in the Iron Age, and ivory in the Middle Ages* Kappa Aquarii, a star in the constellation Aquarius...
, filled with water. The lots were sometimes thrown like dice. The name of "sortes" was in fact given to anything used to determine chances, and was also applied to any verbal response of an oracle.
Various things were written upon the lots according to circumstances, as for instance the names of the persons using them. It seems to have been a favorite practice in later times to write the verses of illustrious poets upon little tablets, and to draw them out of the urn like other lots, the verses which a person thus obtained being supposed to be applicable to him (see Sortes Homerica
Sortes Homerica
The Sortes Homericae was the practice of drawing a random sentence or line from the works of Homer to answer a question or predict the future. Socrates is recorded as doing so in prison to determine the day of his execution, and the practice even occurred in the Renaissance era...
and Sortes Virgilianae
Sortes virgilianae
The Sortes Virgilianae or Sortes Vergilianae is a form of divination by bibliomancy in which advice or predictions of the future are sought by randomly selecting a passage from Virgil's Aeneid. It was most widely practiced in the later Roman Empire and in medieval times...
, lots created from verses of Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
and Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
).
In the Biblical
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
account of the prophet Jonah
Jonah
Jonah is the name given in the Hebrew Bible to a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th century BC, the eponymous central character in the Book of Jonah, famous for being swallowed by a fish or a whale, depending on translation...
, he is thrown into the sea and swallowed by the whale after the sailors on the ship cast lots to detirmine the guilty one who had brought about the storm. It was also the practice to consult the poets in the same way as Muslims
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
do the Koran and Hafiz, and many Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, namely, by opening the book at random and applying the first passage that struck the eye to a person's own immediate circumstances. This practice was very common among the early Christians, who substituted the Bible and the Psalter
Psalter
A psalter is a volume containing the Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a liturgical calendar and litany of the Saints. Until the later medieval emergence of the book of hours, psalters were the books most widely owned by wealthy lay persons and were...
for Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
and Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
. Many church councils repeatedly condemned these Sortes Sanctorum
Sortes Sanctorum
Drawing the Sortes Sanctorum or Sortes Sacrae was a type of divination or cleromancy practiced in early Christianity, derived and adapted from the ancient Roman sortes, as seen in the pagan Sortes Homerica and Sortes Virgilianae.Some early Christians went to church and listened for the words of...
(sacred lots), as they were called.
The Sibylline books
Sibylline Books
The Sibylline Books or Libri Sibyllini were a collection of oracular utterances, set out in Greek hexameters, purchased from a sibyl by the last king of Rome, Tarquinius Superbus, and consulted at momentous crises through the history of the Republic and the Empire...
were probably also consulted in this way. Those who foretold future events by lots were called Sortilegi.
The sortes conviviales were sealed tablets, which were sold at entertainments, and upon being opened or unsealed entitled the purchaser to things of very unequal value. They were therefore a kind of lottery
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
.