Domains
Malevolent ancestral spirits, haunting, the dangerous and unplacated dead
Chthonic
Lemures
Restless spirits of the unquiet dead
The Lemures are the restless, potentially malevolent spirits of the Roman dead — particularly those who died prematurely, without proper burial, or who remained unplacated. Romans feared these spirits would return during certain times of year to trouble or possess the living, and elaborate rites were performed to drive them away.
Lineage
Restless or malevolent spirits of the dead, particularly those who died before their time, without proper burial, or without peace.
Symbols
- Night darkness
- Black beans
- Uneasy shadows
Core Myths
- Ovid explains in his Fasti that the Lemuria festival was founded by Romulus to appease the ghost of his murdered brother Remus.
- The ghost of Remus haunted Romulus until the proper propitiatory rites were established, showing that even a founder's crime leaves unquiet spirits.
- Lemures were thought to wander at night seeking to possess the living or bring sickness and misfortune to the household.
Worship & Cult Context
- The Lemuria festival on May 9, 11, and 13 — odd nights selected to confuse the wandering spirits.
- The paterfamilias rose at midnight, washed his hands three times, and cast black beans over his shoulder nine times, saying: 'These I cast; with these beans I redeem myself and mine.'
- Temples were closed and marriages forbidden during the Lemuria as inauspicious.
- Noise-making with bronze vessels was used to drive away spirits from the home.
Interpretive Themes
Fear of the unquiet dead
Protective ritual
Spirit appeasement
Greek Counterpart
Larvae / Keres (partial)