Pales

Encyclopedia : P : PA : PAL : Pales

Topics in Roman mythology
Important Gods:
Jupiter Mars Quirinus Vesta Juno Fortuna	Minerva Mercury Vulcan Ceres Venus Lares
Legendary History
Roman religion
The Flamens
Greek/Roman myth compared
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Other Rustic Gods:
Bona Dea Carmenta Camenae Dea Dia Convector	Flora Lupercus Pales Pomona Egeria

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 in Latin), Pales was an obscure deity about which little information remains.

Pales' festival, called the Parilia, was celebrated on April 21. Cattle were driven through bonfires on this day. Another festival to Pales, apparently dedicated "to the two Pales" (Palibus duobus) was held on July 7.

Marcus Atilius Regulus built a temple to Pales in Rome following his victory over the Salentini in 267 BC. It is generally thought to have been located on the Palatine Hill, but, being a victory monument, it may have been located on the route of the triumphal procession, either on the Campus Martius or the Aventine Hill.

References

Richardson, L. (1992). A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome. Baltimore and London: The John 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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