Page 1 | Page 2 Editorial Christmas is the greatest celebration in the western world today. This issue, the Saturnalia Special of Acta Diurna, is dedicated to this celebration. Great articles by excellent writers reveal the history behind the celebrations we have today; the roots of the way we spend our holidays can be found in the ancient cultures of Rome, Celtia, Germania, and even Greece. Our reports from the cities of AncientWorlds give you information on winter solstice celebrations at AncientWorlds. In addition, there is also a couple of beautiful articles from the ancient Americas - stories about the traditions of winter time on the American continent. As a new type of item on this issue is a book review! The magnificent writers have again over-exceeded themselves! As a Christmas present to all of them, we have a holiday break after this issue - next Acta should be out some time in January to bring you a forecast of events and plans for the year MMIII. Thank you, all writers and readers, for the year MMII! Our IV issues of this year were all magnificent, thanks to all of you! Maximius Flavius AncientWorlds Update ROMAN SATURNALIA Saturnalia is Rome is always a season of good cheer, topsy-turveydom (one of its features was that the slave became the master for a day, a tradition that was passed down in later Christmas traditions in such features as the Lord of Misrule), lots of Falernian, the gifts of small items including candles, and a complete lack of seriousity. Saturn, after all, was the Lord of Mirth and joviality, as well as the god of sowing. Catullus called the Saturnalia "the best of days" (Catullus 14.15) for its deep roots in the celebration of the winter solstice and the rebirth of light and mirth in the heart of winter. The festival dates varied through the course of Roman history, but began as the feast day of Saturn (December 17) and his wife, Ops (December 19), both ancient Roman fertility deities. Saturn was the god of Agriculture (merging later with the Greek god Cronos) while Ops was the goddess of plenty and mother earth. During the Empire the ever-popular festival was extended to seven days, from December 17 through December 23. On December 17, formal sacrifices inaugurated the festival of the Forum?s legendary Temple of Saturn (which you can still see, in ruins, in today?s Rome). As Saturn?s name was derived from satus (for sowing of grains for crops), a highly specified series of actions helped honor the god. The statue of Saturn in his temple, covered in woolen bonds (wool also symbolized wealth and fertility) was freed of its coverings. A festive banquet then celebrated this ?break from winter care? with people dressing informally, often in the loose Greek multi-colored gown called the synthesis, and wearing soft woolen caps (next time you see the "silly hats" of a Christmas celebration, you?ve seen one of Saturnalia?s traditions!). Shouts of "Io, Io Saturnalia!" welcomed in the seven days of relaxation. In each Roman home, the Master might wait on his own servants and one of the slaves was commonly chosen as Saturnalicius Princeps (Master of the Saturnalia), who could order others around in a complete reversal of roles. On the final day (December 23), everyone exchanged small gifts including sigillaria (small, special-event pottery dolls) for the children and cerei (small candles) for adults. So many Roman Saturnalia traditions existed that, when the (Roman) Christian Church decided to celebrate Christ?s birth on December 25, the Saturnalia traditions were taken over wholesale. You might say Jolly Old St. Nicholas bears a startling resemblance to jovial Saturn; sacred candles and flames symbolize for us, as they did to Ancient Rome, the celebration of the new solar year out of the winter darkness. The bonds of friends and family in shared feasting, gift giving, mirth and celebration also live again in our modern holiday. If you want to do a traditional Roman Saturnalia, here?s the "step by step" method and touch the ancient world! Saturnalia - A Winter Solstice Ritual. . Ancient or modern, the Saturnalia is a time of joy, generosity, and hangovers! Heraklia Aelius THIS MONTH IN EGYPT The Egypt Board is alive with activity. I would like to personally compliment Nilaja Amenhotep for helping so many returning Kemetins feel at home. She has worked tirelessly for the Em Hotep area and Welcoming Committee. On Onions Hatshepsut's Egyptian Trivia Thread, Yuya Amenhotep took the time to carefully catalog every trivia question, then place them in numerical order, to help prevent repeat questions and make for ease of reference. Mirjam Nebet sparked a streak of posts on Josephia Flavius' Egyptian Poetry and Texts , with her suggestion to begin interpreting the ancient words of wisdom, and discuss their relevance to modern day society. On the Egyptian History topic, questions about the ancient Opet festival resulted in this exquisite post written by Xolotl Huascar. SenenAnep Meritamen took center stage at the Ancient Egyptian Timeline, Third Intermediate Period, by composing background information on the lives of three Pharaohs, Sheshonq I , Osorkon I, and Sheshonq II . And for those whose tastes lead to historical R&R, a whodunit mystery is in full swing at Oset Ramesses' Alexandria After Dark . A dead body recently washed up from the Hap! In addition to this, several females have gathered together at The Baths, with Bar-O Hostess Mari Leonidas, to organize a special, "private" beauty regimen? If all that isn't enough, Egypt's groups have sprung to life. As the long planned Alexandria Library prepares to open its doors, several new editors and librarians have been hired. Feline Thutmose was appointed Curatrix of the Museum. Mirjam Nebet is the librarian in charge of our deities section. Hapshetsut Nebet is our librarian for artistry, and the ACTA's own Maximius Flavius is in charge of our philosophy section. Since the Library is an interactive learning resource, which (like its original real world counterpart) will encompass a vast array of gathered research tools, we ask for those with special interest in our remaining sections to step forward. Be a librarian! It's good for the brain. Besides offering the finest cup of Kaffa in Kemet, Onions Hatshepsut's Women of the Two Lands group has served up two new sections~ The Egyptian Woman and Her Family and The Egyptian Woman and Society, Career, Law. What was family life like for the ancient Egyptian woman? What were her societal roles? Come find out. See also, In Reach of the Crown ~ Powerful Women of Antiquity . Saphire Sithathor and Mirjam Nebet have begun an inspiring conversation about New Kingdom Queen, Ahmose Nefertari. Egypt's KMT group reopened to a flurry of activity. With its new direction, a united community of 107 Egyptians has joined together en masse, and in peace, to focus on timeline/ruler specific RPG. Several new boards have been created. Our first board to open was Ayesha Meritamen's Horizon of the Aten , a factual historical role-play based on the reign of Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten). Don't miss Ayesha's Information about the Amarna Period , Books, and Character list . Senenmut Hatshepsut heads up KMT's second RPG, Ta-meri: Heredet ne Hap . His board is focusing on the Ptolemaic era reign of Cleopatra VII, as Queen of Egypt. Our third RPG board, led by Nebmaatre Thutmose, is called Ankh Tawy: Life in the Two Lands, and concentrates on the Late Period, when Artaxerxes III Ochus' Persian army prepared to invade the Nile Delta. Check out A Glimpse into the late period , Inspirational Historical Figures , Bibliography and States that coexisted during the 4th century BC . Our final RPG to be featured in this issue of ACTA, is The Golden Horus , run by Hapshetsut Nebet. Her Dynasty XIX, 1280 BCE board will highlight life in ancient Egypt under Pharaoh Ramesses II. Even if you are not the role-playing type, come take a look at KMT's blossoming boards. So much effort goes into them. Each RPG Board Leader, and their supporters, are to be commended for a job well done. AUS, Egypt! Life, Prosperity and Health to all of Ancient Worlds. AzureEyes Ramesses YULE AT GERMANIA Since so many of our modern Christmas traditions are derived from the ancient Germanic winter solstice festival of Yule, Germania will be celebrating its Yule feast and sacrifice on December 13th. After a solemn procession through the wintery forest to the great pagan temple at Old Uppsala, a boar - an animal sacred to the fertility god Ing-Freyr - will be sacrificed and then taken to the feast hall for the annual Festival of Lights (now celebrated as St Lucia?s Day in Scandinavia). So don your holly wreaths, put on your finest feasting tunics and help bring the light of the new year back with plenty of mead, ale and roasted boar! Check out the Yule at Germania thread for updated details, links to Yuletide information and for the event itself on the 13th. See you there. Thiudareiks Gunthigg SATURNALIA LINKS A great deal of information and serious research has been done by so many members of AncientWorlds. Here I wish to guide everyone to two websites by two very prominent Romans who have made pages on the festival soon at hand, Saturnalia. FeAudrey Pinguinius's SPQR Companion is a companion to everyone interested in ancient history, especially ancient Rome. FeAudrey's magnificent guidebook also includes a special page for Saturnalia including the top links to visit for more information. FeAudrey's SPQR Companion is a site which must be checked out every once in a while to see the newest links and information! Another famous Roman at AncientWorlds is Senex Caecilius, who has composed a comprehensive site on many topics. Senex's emphasis is strongly on ancient history, especially Rome and the Latin language. Everyone must already have seen Senex's Christmas Calendar , which he has given to all of AncientWorlds as a Saturnalia gift, but his remarkable site includes a lot more information, quizzes and fun. Senex tells that his long experience as a teacher and years of developing new teaching methods has led him to come up with all kinds of puzzles he has so generously uploaded for everyone to use in his Ludi Seniles . Really a "must" site for everyone wishing to learn more about ancient history! Maximius Flavius

In This Issue EDITORIAL ROMAN SATURNALIA THIS MONTH IN EGYPT YULE AT GERMANIA SATURNALIA LINKS HISTORY OF SATURNALIA WINTER SOLSTICE IN ANCIENT GREECE CELTIC HERITAGE IN CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS THE TALE OF THE CUETLAXOCHITL AWAKENING IN THE AMERICAS BOOK REVIEW Reporters and Contributors Editor: Maximius Flavius Reporter, Rome: Heraklia Aelius Reporter, Rome: Caeseria Maximus Reporter, Athens: Aphrodite Theocritos Reporter, Egypt: Onions Hatshepsut Reporter, Egypt: AzureEyes Ramesses Reporter, Germania: Thiudareiks Gunthigg Reporter, Babylon: Apiladey Apilsin Reporter, Celtia: Andrasta Baoisgne Reporter, Machu Picchu: ChanChan Tupac Article: Lucius Aelius Stilo Article: Athenia Glaucon Article: Xolotl Huascar Book Review: Optimus Valerius Graphics: Tobius Tullius Articles, stories and reports for Acta are very welcome. Contact Maximius if you wish to contribute.