Death and burial in the Roman world

Description:

Never before available in paperback, J. M. C. Toynbee's study is the most comprehensive book on Roman burial practices. Ranging throughout the Roman world - from Rome to Pompeii, from Britain to Jerusalem - Toynbee's book examines funeral practices from a wide variety of perspectives. Toynbee first examines Roman beliefs about death and the afterlife, revealing that few Romans believed in the Elysian Fields of poetic invention. She then describes the rituals associated with burial and mourning: commemorative meals at the gravesite were common, with some tombs having built-in kitchens and rooms in which family could stay overnight. Toynbee also includes descriptions of the layout and finances of cemeteries, the tomb types of both the rich and the poor, and the types of grave markers and monuments, as well as tomb furnishings.

subjects: Social life and customs,  Tombs,  Funeral rites and ceremonies,  Death,  Bestattung,  Rites et cérémonies,  Romeinse oudheid,  Manners and customs,  Funérailles,  History,  Provinces occidentales,  Godsdienst,  Funeral Rites,  Mortuary Practice,  Provinces orientales,  Dodenbezorging,  Rome, social life and customs,  Antiquities

Places: Rome