Fascinus
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thumb|300px|Gallo-Roman examples of the fascinum in bronze. The topmost is an example of the "fist and phallus" amulet with a manus fica. thumb|150px|Phallus inscribed on a paving stone at Pompeii In ancient Roman religion and magic, the fascinus or fascinum was the embodiment of the divine phallus. The word can refer to phallus effigies and amulets, and to the spells used to invoke his divine protection. Pliny called it a medicus invidiae, a "doctor" or remedy for envy (invidia, a "looking upon") or the evil eye.
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7 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Public religion
- As a magic symbol
- See also
- Notes
- References
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thumb|300px|Gallo-Roman examples of the fascinum in bronze. The topmost is an example of the "fist and phallus" amulet with a manus fica. thumb|150px|Phallus inscribed on a paving stone at Pompeii In ancient Roman religion and magic, the fascinus or fascinum was the embodiment of the divine phallus. The word can refer to phallus effigies and amulets, and to the spells used to invoke his divine protection. Pliny called it a medicus invidiae, a "doctor" or remedy for envy (invidia, a "looking upon") or the evil eye.
==Etymology== The English word "fascinate" ultimately derives from Latin fascinum and the related verb fascinare, "to use the power of the fascinus", that is, "to practice magic" and hence "to enchant, bewitch". Catullus uses the verb at the end of Carmen 7, a hendecasyllabic poem addressing his lover Lesbia; he expresses his infinite desire for kisses that cannot be counted by voyeurs nor "fascinated" (put under a spell) by a malicious tongue; such bliss, as also in Carmen 5, potentially attracts invidia.