Lapis manalis
Roman sacred stones
A lapis manalis was either of two sacred stones used in the Roman religion. Although they had the same name, they were distinct stones: one the cover to the gate of the underworld and the other a rainmaking stone.
Gate to the underworld
One lapis manalis covered the mundus Cereris, a pit thought to contain an entrance to the underworld. The grammarian Festus called it ostium Orci, "the gate of Orcus". Most cities of Latium and Etruria contained a similar pit or ditch; Plutarch describes the custom of a mundus as being of Etruscan origin, and states that it was used as a place where first-fruits were deposited. The Latin word mundus meant "world". Festus, quoting Cato this time, explains that:
Mundo nomen impositum est ab eo mundo qui supra nos est.
(The mundus gets its name from that world which is above us.)
The Roman mundus was located in the Comitium. This stone was ceremonially opened three times a year, during which spirits of the blessed dead (the Manes) were able to commune with the living. The three days upon which the mundus was opened were August 24, October 5, and November 8.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Lapis manalis” is roman sacred stones. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Lapis, manalis and Roman, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “roman sacred stones” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 27, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q508097. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Lapis manalis”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Lapis manalis primary sources, Lapis manalis archive and Lapis research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Lapis manalis”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Lapis manalis” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.