Semo Sancus
Roman · deity · regal · Recorded classification
Sancus is what makes a promise hold. His name belongs with sancire, to make binding, and his other name, Dius Fidius, puts the sky-god element beside fides, sworn faith — so that the god is the oath itself, guaranteed under the open sky. Romans swore by him constantly: medius fidius, so help me Dius Fidius. The cult was reckoned one of the oldest in the city and his temple stood on the Quirinal, in the same Sabine stratum as Quirinus. The Umbrian Fisus Sancius of the Iguvine Tablets, already in this registry, carries the same Sancius element and is linked here without being merged.
Domains
- oaths
Powers
- to make an oath binding, so that the swearer is held by it
Epithets
- Dius FidiusReference treatment of the compound name Semo Sancus Dius Fidius. (secondary)
Relations
- counterpart of: Fisus SanciusThe Italic counterpart of the Umbrian Fisus Sancius of the Iguvine Tablets, who shares the Sancius element. The two are kept as separate records; this edge states the relation without asserting that they are one god.Reference treatment comparing the Umbrian Fisus/Fisovius Sancius of the Iguvine Tablets with Sabine Semo Sancus and Roman Dius Fidius. (secondary)
Sources
- Semo Sancus, also called Dius Fidius, is the Roman god of trust, honesty and oaths, worshipped in one of the most ancient Roman cults with a temple on the Quirinal.: Reference treatment of Sancus / Semo Sancus Dius Fidius, his spheres, the antiquity of the cult and the Quirinal temple. (secondary)