PONTIFEX  . The collegium of the Pontifices was the most important priesthood of See also:

• ANCIENT
• ANCIENT (also spelt ANTIENT; derived, through the Fr. ancien, old, from the late Lat. antianum, from ante, before)

ancient See also:

• ROME
• ROME (Roma)

Rome, being specially charged with the See also:

• ADMINISTRATION (Lat. administrare, to serve)

administration of the See also:

• JUS

jus divinum, i.e. that See also:

• PART

part of the See also:

• PONTIVY

PONTIVY See also:

• CIVIL

civil See also:

• LAW
• LAW (0. Eng. lagu, M. Eng. lawe; from an old Teutonic root lag, " lie," what lies fixed or evenly; cf. Lat. lex, Fr. loi)
• LAW, JOHN (1671—1729)
• LAW, WILLIAM (1686-1761)

law which regulated the relations of the community with the deities recognized by the See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state officially, together with a See also:

• GENERAL
• GENERAL (Lat. generalis, of or relating to a genus, kind or class)

general superintendence of the See also:

• WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

worship of gens and See also:

• FAMILY

family . The name is clearly derived from pons and facere, but whether this should be taken as indicating any See also:

• SPECIAL

special connexion with the sacred See also:

• BRIDGE

bridge over the See also:

• TIBER (anc. Tiberis; Ital. Tevere)

Tiber (Pons Sublicius) , or what the See also:

• ORIGINAL

original meaning may have been, cannot now be determined . The See also:

• COLLEGE (Collegium)

college existed under the See also:

• MONARCHY (Fr. monarchic, from Lat. monarchia, Gr. uovapXia, rule of one, µbvos, alone, apXi7, rule)

monarchy, when its members were probably three in number; they may safely be considered as legal advisers of the rex in all matters of See also:

• RELIGION
• RELIGION, FOLKLORE, CUSTOM

religion . Under the See also:

• REPUBLIC (Lat. respublica, a commonweal or common-wealth)

republic they emerge into prominence under a pontifex See also:

• MAXIMUS
• MAXIMUS, ST (c. 58o-662)

maximus, who took over the See also:

• KING
• KING (O. Eng. cyning, abbreviated into cyng, cing; cf. O. H. G. chun- kuning, chun- kunig, M.H.G. kiinic, kiinec, kiinc, Mod. Ger. Konig, O. Norse konungr, kongr, Swed. konung, kung)
• KING [OF OCKHAM], PETER KING, 1ST BARON (1669-1734)
• KING, CHARLES WILLIAM (1818-1888)
• KING, CLARENCE (1842–1901)
• KING, EDWARD (1612–1637)
• KING, EDWARD (1829–1910)
• KING, HENRY (1591-1669)
• KING, RUFUS (1755–1827)
• KING, THOMAS (1730–1805)
• KING, WILLIAM (1650-1729)
• KING, WILLIAM (1663–1712)

king's duties as See also:

• CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief See also:

• ADMINISTRATOR

administrator of religious law, just as his chief sacrificial duties were taken by the rex sacrorum; his dwelling was the regia, " the See also:

• HOUSE
• HOUSE (O. Eng. hiss, a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dut. huis, Ger. Haus; in Gothic it is only found in gudhiss, a temple; it may be ultimately connected with the root of " hide," conceal)

house of the king." During the republican See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period the number of pontifices increased, probably by multiples of three, until after See also:

• SULLA, LUCIUS CORNELIUS (138–78 B.C.)

Sulla (82 B.C.) we find them fifteen; for the See also:

• YEAR

year 57 B.C. we have a See also:

• COMPLETE

complete See also:

• LIST (O.E. lisle, a Teutonic word, cf. Dut. lust, Ger. Leiste, adapted in Ital. lista and Fr. lisle)
• LIST, FRIEDRICH (1789-1846)

list of them in See also:

• CICERO

Cicero (Harusp. See also:

• RESP

resp . 6, 12) . Included in the collegium were also the rex sacrorum, the flamines, three assistant pontifices (minores), and the vestal virgins, who were all chosen by the pontifex maximus . Vacancies in the See also:

• BODY

body of pontifices were originally filled by co-optation; but from the second Punic See also:

• WAR
• WAR (O. Eng. werre, Fr. guerre, of Teutonic origin; cf. O.H.G. werran, to confound)

War onwards the pontifex maximus was chosen by a See also:

• PECULIAR

peculiar See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form of popular See also:

• ELECTION
• ELECTION (from Lat. eligere, to pick out)

election, and in the last See also:

• AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age of the republic this held See also:

• GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good for all the members . They all held See also:

• OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")

office for See also:

• LIFE

life . The immense authority of the college centred in the pontifex maximus, the other pontifices forming his consilium or advising body . His functions were partly sacrificial or ritualistic, but these were the least important; the real See also:

• POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power See also:

• LAY

lay in the administration of the jus divinum, the chief departments of which may briefly be described as follows: (1) the regulation of all expiatory ceremonials needed as the result of pestilence, See also:

• LIGHTNING

lightning, &c.; (2) the See also:

• CONSECRATION (Lat. consecrallo, from con and sacrare, " to make sacred ")

consecration of all temples and other sacred places and See also:

• OBJECTS

objects dedicated to the gods by the state through its magistrates; (3) the regulation of the See also:

• CALENDAR

calendar both astronomically and in detailed application to the public life of the state; (4) the administration of the law See also:

• RELATING

relating to burials and burying-places, and the worship of the See also:

• MANES

Manes, or dead ancestors; (5) thesuperintendence of all marriages by confarreatio, i.e. originally of all legal patrician marriages; (6) the administration of the law of See also:

• ADOPTION (Lat. adoptio, for adoptalio, from adoptare, to choose for oneself)

adoption and of testamentary See also:

• SUCCESSION (Lat. successio, from succedere, to follow after)

succession . They had also the care of the state archives, of the lists of magistrates, and kept records of their own decisions (See also:

• COMMENTARII (Lat. = Gr. broµvijµara)

commentarii) and of the chief events of each year (annales) .

It is obvious that a priesthood having such functions as these, and holding office for life, must have been a See also:

• GREAT

great power in the state, and for the first three centuries of the republic it is probable that the pontifex maximus was in fact its most powerful member . The office might be combined with a magistracy, and, though its See also:

• POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

powers were declaratory rather than executive, it may fairly be described as quasi-magisterial . Under the later republic it was coveted chiefly for the great dignity of the position; See also:

• JULIUS

Julius See also:

• CAESAR, GAIUS JULIUS (102—44 B.c.)
• CAESAR, SIR JULIUS (1557-1558-1636)

Caesar held it for the last twenty years of his life, and See also:

• AUGUSTUS (a name 1 derived from Lat. augeo, increase, i.e. venerable, majestic, Gr. Ee0avr6s)

Augustus took it after the'See also:

• DEATH

death of See also:

• LEPIDUS

Lepidus in 12 B.C., after which it became inseparable from the office of the reigning See also:

• EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

emperor . With the decay of the See also:

• EMPIRE

empire the See also:

• TITLE (0. Fr. title, mod. titre, from Lat. titulus)

title very naturally See also:

• FELL
• FELL, JOHN (1625-1686)

fell to the popes, whose functions as administrators of religious law closely resembled those of the ancient See also:

• ROMAN

Roman priesthood, hence the See also:

• MODERN

modern use of " pontiff " and " pontifical." For further details consult See also:

• MARQUARDT, JOACHIM (1812–1882)

Marquardt, Staatsverwaltung, iii . 235 seq . ; Wissowa, Religion and Kultus der Romer, 43o seq . ; Bouche-Leclercq, See also:

• LES

Les Pontifes, passim . (W . W . F .