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THE PI OF POLITICS
Figure 9.2 Early fourth-century fresco of Rome personified, standing on the foundation of
virtue, honor, and government, holding victory in her hand. National Museum of Rome.
Photo courtesy of April D. DeConick.
values maintained the highly structured Roman society, with its strict hierarchies
built on patron–client relationships and status. Romans who embodied
these traditional values earned status in society (Martin 2012, 22).
Romans prized public religion and considered it their civic duty to
support the official set of sacrifices, prayers, and rituals that the state sanctioned
in the cities’ temples. Ancestral religion was valued most highly,
out of fear that altering the customary honors paid to the gods might
offend the deities and provoke their anger. Honoring the gods with customary
gifts and prayers of gratitude upheld the human–god relationship.