Inancient Roman religion andmagic, thefascinus orfascinum was the embodiment of the divinephallus. The word can refer to phalluseffigies andamulets, and to the spells used to invoke his divine protection.[1]Pliny called it amedicus invidiae, a "doctor" or remedy for envy (invidia, a "looking upon") or theevil eye.
The English word "fascinate" ultimately derives from Latinfascinum and the related verbfascinare, "to use the power of thefascinus", that is, "to practice magic" and hence "to enchant, bewitch".Catullus uses the verb at the end ofCarmen 7, ahendecasyllabic poem addressing his lover Lesbia; he expresses his infinite desire for kisses that cannot be counted by voyeurs nor "fascinated" (put under a spell) by a malicious tongue; such bliss, as also inCarmen 5, potentially attractsinvidia.[2]
Fescennine Verses, the satiric and often lewd songs or chants performed on various social occasions, may have been so-named from thefascinum; ancient sources propose this etymology along with an alternative origin fromFescennia, a small town inEtruria.[3]
TheVestal Virgins tended the cult of thefascinuspopuli Romani, the sacred image of the phallus that was one of the tokens of the safety of the state(sacra Romana). It was thus associated with thePalladium.[4]Roman myths, such as the begetting ofServius Tullius, suggest that this phallus was an embodiment of a masculine generative power located within the hearth, regarded as sacred.[5] When a general celebrated atriumph, the Vestals hung an effigy of thefascinus on the underside of hischariot to protect him frominvidia.[6]
Augustine, whose primary source on Roman religion was the lost theological works ofMarcus Terentius Varro, notes that a phallic image was carried in procession annually at the festival ofFather Liber, the Roman godidentified withDionysus or Bacchus, for the purpose of protecting the fields fromfascinatio, magic compulsion:[7]
Varro says that certain rites of Liber were celebrated in Italy which were of such unrestrained wickedness that the shameful parts of the male were worshipped at crossroads in his honour. … For, during the days of thefestival of Liber, this obscene member, placed on a little trolley, was first exhibited with great honour at the crossroads in the countryside, and then conveyed into the city itself. … In this way, it seems, the god Liber was to be propitiated, in order to secure the growth of seeds and to repel enchantment(fascinatio) from the fields.[8]
As a divinized phallus, Fascinus shared attributes withMutunus Tutunus, whose shrine was supposed to date from thefounding of the city, and the imported Greek godPriapus.[9]
Phallic charms, often winged, were ubiquitous in Roman culture, appearing as objects of jewellery such as pendants and finger rings, relief carvings, lamps, and wind chimes (tintinnabula).[10][11][12]Fascinus was thought particularly to ward off evil from children, mainly boys, and from conquering generals (see n. 6). The protective function of the phallus is usually related to the virile and regenerative powers of an erect phallus, though in most cases the emotion, shame, or laughter created by obscenity is the power that diverts the evil eye.[13]
There are very few Roman images of people wearing a phallic charm.[13] Varro notes the custom of hanging a phallic charm on a baby's neck,[a] and examples have been found of phallus-bearing rings too small to be worn except by children.[14] A 2017experimental archaeology project suggested that some types of phallic pendant were designed to remain pointing outwards, in the direction of travel of the wearer, in order to face towards any potential danger or bad luck and nullify it before it could affect the wearer.[15] Other symbols may have been interchangeable with the phallus, such as the club ofHercules.[13]
The victory of the phallus over the power of the evil eye may be represented by the phallus ejaculating towards a disembodied eye. This motif is shown in several examples of Roman art.[16] For example, the motif is known from multiplerelief sculptures fromLeptis Magna in present-dayLibya,[11] as well as several instances onHadrian's Wall.[17] A 1st-century BCterracotta figurine shows "two little phallus-men sawing an eyeball in half".[10][11]
The "fist and phallus" amulet was prevalent amongst soldiers. These are phallic pendants with a representation of a (usually) clenched fist at the bottom of the shaft, facing away from theglans. Several examples show the fist making themanus fica or "fig sign", a symbol of good luck.[14][18] The largest known collection comes fromCamulodunum.[19] Some examples of the fist-and-phallus amulets incorporatevulvar imagery as well as an extraapotropaic device.[20]
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