Round 7: Tossup 19

A voice that came from one of these places before the Gallic attack on Rome was worshipped as the Aius Locutius. Each year, the Arval Brethren gathered in one of these places outside Rome to ensure Dea Dia’s harvest blessing. These places were the centers of worship for the Sabine goddess Feronia and a cult legendarily founded by Virbius at Aricia. (15[1])Romans contrasted their own type of this place, the lucus, with the horrifying (*) nemeton, where Pliny reported that “magicians” crafted elixirs using golden sickles. One of these places near Lake Nemi was overseen by a rex devoted to Diana Nemorensis; (10[1])that priest-king (10[1])of one of these places would kill his predecessor in combat, inspiring the fertility sacrifice hypothesis of James Frazer. For 10 points, in what natural spaces did druids purportedly (10[1])cut mistletoe? ■END■

Back to tossups

Buzzes

Summary