Bidental
Encyclopedia
- For the phonetics terms, see Bidental consonantBidental consonantBidental consonants are consonants pronounced with both the lower and upper teeth. They are normally found only in speech pathology. The Extensions to the IPA symbol is both a superscript and a subscript bridge, ....
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In ancient Roman religion
Religion in ancient Rome
Religion in ancient Rome encompassed the religious beliefs and cult practices regarded by the Romans as indigenous and central to their identity as a people, as well as the various and many cults imported from other peoples brought under Roman rule. Romans thus offered cult to innumerable deities...
, the bidentales were priests who performed rituals to mark out a place that had been struck by lightning
Lightning
Lightning is an atmospheric electrostatic discharge accompanied by thunder, which typically occurs during thunderstorms, and sometimes during volcanic eruptions or dust storms...
as a sacred precinct (templum). Their primary role was to sacrifice a two-year-old sheep, in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
bidens, meaning "having teeth (dentes) on each side." Such a place was thus called a bidental. It was not permitted to be walked over, and was enclosed with a wall, or palisade
Palisade
A palisade is a steel or wooden fence or wall of variable height, usually used as a defensive structure.- Typical construction :Typical construction consisted of small or mid sized tree trunks aligned vertically, with no spacing in between. The trunks were sharpened or pointed at the top, and were...
, with an altar erected over it. The Puteal Scribonianum
Puteal Scribonianum
The Puteal Scribonianum or Puteal Libonis was a structure in the Forum Romanum in Ancient Rome...
was a bidental.