A Very Merry Saturnalia to You

Every December, the Ancient Romans took part in a festival of
feasting, drinking, gift-giving and awkward office parties. So far,
so Christmas. But, in this episode, Mary and Charlotte ask what
really went on during the Roman festival of Saturnalia and whether
the comparisons to Christmas really hold?  As is so often the
case, we discover a people and culture similar to us in some ways,
yet also completely alien. The records show that socks were
sometimes Saturnalia presents – but, disturbingly, so too were
enslaved people. Jokes about the boss were acceptable at Christmas
parties, unless - as we discover in one macabre story - the boss
happens to be the emperor Nero.  The brutal side of Saturnalia
becomes really apparent when you consider the differences between
Santa and Saturn. One likes to spoil children, the other has a
horrid habit of eating them. So if you do decide to celebrate
Saturnalia, no laughing at the boss, and keep those chimneys
blocked!  Charlotte and Mary’s reading suggestions The best
guides to the Saturnalia are the ancient sources themselves.
Martial’s “gift tags” are Books 13 and 14 of his Epigrams (rather
stilted translations here:
https://www.ccel.org/ccel/pearse/morefathers/files/martial_epigrams_book13.htm
and https://www.tertullian.org/fathers/martial_epigrams_book14.htm
The Saturnalia of Nero and Britannicus is described at Tacitus
Annals 13, 15. Macrobius’ Saturnalia  (c 400 CE) is a long,
multi-book, learned discussion (set at a Saturnalian festival),
which speculates on the origins of the festival among much else.
Mary discusses the chilling Roman practice of giving enslaved
people as presents in her Emperor of Rome (Profile, pb, 2024)
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