The Goddess Feronia and the Enslaved Communities in Republican Roman Italy

This paper analyzes the distinctive association enslaved communities in peninsular Italy made with the goddess Feronia. In particular, the paper collects and focuses on all known votive inscriptions to Feronia found in Roman Italy. The analysis of the inscriptions shows that many dedicators were freed or enslaved individuals. Literary evidence also supports that the enslaved community had a connection to Feronia; in particular, a passage from Servius speaks of a now lost inscription which alludes to an ‘extra-legal’ manumission ceremony taking place in Feronia’s temple. This hypothesis is explored and weighed against similar stories of manumission without legal sanction.