A Small Sacrificial Ceremony

 March 15th 44 BC, A Small Sacrificial Ceremony

            As Rome’s chief priest, Julius Caesar now stands before a small crowd, readying for a sacrificial ceremony just before the senate meeting. His wife had warned him not attend the meeting. She had a bad feeling was how she described it. Now Caesar puts it in the back of his mind. The ceremony is about to begin. That’s when he spotted the haruspex Spurinna across the crowd. The man had warned him that his life would be in danger no later than the Ides of March just a few days ago. Maybe his wife had unconsciously repeated Spurinna’s words?

            And now he stands, upright, healthy, and in no way dead.

            “Spurinna!” Caesar shouts playfully at the man, “The Ides of March have come!”

            “Yes, the Ides have come, but they have not yet gone.”

            Caesar laughs heartily, but why does he feel like his stomach has been turned over?


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→ Part 9: The Theater of Pompey

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