The shade
of the Emperor Caligula wandered in the gardens of the palace; it was
necessary to disinter the body and bury it anew in regular form.
=Cult of the Dead.=--It was of importance, therefore, to both the
living and the dead that the rites should be observed. The family of
the deceased erected a funeral pile, burned the body on it, and placed
the ashes in an urn which was deposited in the tomb, a little chapel
dedicated to the Manes,[114] _i.e._, the souls that had become gods.
On fixed days of the year the relatives came to the tomb to bring
food; doubtless they believed that the soul was in need of
nourishment, for wine and milk were poured on the earth, flesh of
victims was burned, and vessels of milk and cakes were left behind.
These funeral ceremonies were perpetuated for an indefinite period; a
family could not abandon the souls of its ancestors, but continued to
maintain their tomb and the funeral feasts. In return, these souls
which had become gods loved and protected their posterity. Each
family, therefore, had its guardian deities which they called Lares.
=Cult of the Hearth.
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