Inancient Roman religion,Pales was a deity of shepherds, flocks and livestock. Regarded as male by some sources and female by others,Pales can be either singular or plural inLatin, and refers at least once to a pair of deities.

Pales' festival, called theParilia, was celebrated on April 21. Cattle were driven through bonfires on this day. Pales and the Parilia were strictly connected to the foundation of Rome which took place on the day of their festival.

Marcus Atilius Regulus built a temple to Pales inRome following his victory over theSalentini in 267 BC. It is generally thought to have been located on thePalatine Hill, but, being a victory monument, it may have been located on the route of thetriumphal procession, either on theCampus Martius or theAventine Hill. According to theFasti Antiates Maiores, there was a festival for "the two Pales" (Palibus duobus) on July 7, probably to mark the dedication of this temple.^[1]

Scholarship has suggested the Pales deities are related to Sicilian pair of godsPalici, and both sets of brother may be reflexes of theIndo-Europeanmytheme of theDivine twins.^[2]

Pales appears inpastoral plays of the 16th and 17th centuries, commonly depicted as an assistant toPan.^[3]

• Richardson, L. (1992).A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome. Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press. (p. 282)
• Scullard, H.H. (1981).Festivals and Ceremonies of the Roman Republic. London: Thames and Hudson. (p. 104–105)

• Roman gods
• Roman goddesses
• Agricultural deities
• Roman deities

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