6o Htitton Webster 



them to Saturn^- or to Jupiter, and by requiring the Flaminica 

 DiaHs to sacrifice a bull to Jupiter on their occurrence. These 

 regulations bear an archaic stamp, suggesting that at a remote 

 period the nundinae may have been quasi-holy days, more or less 

 resembling those which have been found in other parts of the 

 world. "^ 



" Plutarch, Quacstiones Romauac, 42. 



"I have elsewhere {infra) advanced reasons for believing that the 

 nundinal cycle, in historic times a periodic week, running continuously 

 through the months and years, was originally a lunar week which arose 

 from the quartering of the synodic month. From this the conjecture is 

 possible that the nundinal day was originally unfit for labor because of 

 lunar taboos which attached to it. Certain considerations give more or 

 less plausibility to such an hypothesis. If the nundinae were once feriae, 

 then they were absolutely nefastae, unsuitable, that is, for public business 

 and judicial transactions. The Hortensian law in 287 B. C. made them 

 dies fasfae (ut fastae essent nundinae, Macrobius, Sat. i. 16. Cf. Pliny, 

 Hist, nat., xviii. 13 ; Madvig, Verfassung und Verzvaltung d. rom. Staates, 

 i. 254 n; Daremberg and Saglio, op. cit., iii. 176, iv. 1047 sq.). We might 

 therefore see in this law, besides its avowed political purpose, the desire 

 to free the nundinal day from irksome restrictions which had previously 

 characterized it. But such an interpretation is open to serious criticism. 

 It seems probable that at least from the middle of the fifth century B. C, 

 the nundinal days could be used for the settlement of legal business as is 

 indicated by a passage in the Twelve Tables — Tertiis nundinis partis 

 secanto, " On the third market-day, the creditors shall make a division of 

 the property" {Tabula, iii. 6, in Gellius, xx. i, 49). Some authorities hold 

 that there is also reason for believing that until the Hortensian law, 

 meetings of the public assemblies might be held on the nundinal day. On 

 this view the lex Hortensia made the nundinal days dies fastae non 

 coiiiitiales, that is, forbade comitial meetings on these dates though allow- 

 ing judicial business to be done thereon. The peasants who came into the 

 city to use the markets were thus given an opportunity to settle their 

 lawsuits without being engrossed by the duties of voting for magistrates. 

 (For this explanation see G. W. Botsford, Roman Assemblies, New York, 

 1909, pp. 139, 315, 471; Marquardt-Wissowa, Romische Staatsverwaltnng, 

 iii.^ 290). In the presence of the conflicting testimony of the classical 

 writers the precise nature of the nundinae and of the legislation affecting 

 them, becomes a matter difficult to make out. The subject would repay 

 exhaustive investigation. For several references in the above note I am 

 indebted to my colleague. Prof. F. W. San ford. On the nundinae, gener- 



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