Quinquatrus

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The Quinquatrus , later also Quinquatria , were two festivals of the ancient Roman religion .

The actual Quinquatrus (also called Quinquatrus maiores for differentiation ) took place on the fifth day (hence the name) after the Ides of March, which corresponds to March 19 . The festival was later extended to five days until March 23 , among other things to hold gladiator fights . Originally it was probably a festival in honor of the god of war Mars , since in addition to the Salii , the priests of Mars, tribunes of the Roman army also took part and the arma ancilia were symbolically cleaned in preparation for future military actions. In later times the Quinquatrus were primarily a festival for the goddess Minerva to celebrate her birthday and the foundation of her temple on the Aventine .

The "smaller quinquatrus" ( Quinquatrus minusculae ) took place on June 13th to 15th. On them flute players ( tibicines ) marched through the city to the temple of Minerva. They were also catered for in the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitol . During the imperial era, it was mainly the teachers who were also under the protection of Minerva who celebrated the festival. The connection with the Quinquatrus in March has not been clearly established.

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