lictor
1
9.9
- noun
- /ˈlɪktər/
- Archaic
- Armstrong stresses the bifurcation of the work, connecting it to the composition of J. L. David's Lictors Returning the Bodies of His Sons to Brutus.
Examples
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In ancient Rome, consuls were always accompanied by twelve lictors during public appearances.
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Consuls were escorted in public by twelve lictors.
Blog text (28) -
Inside the pomerium, lictors carried a ceremonial bundle of sticks.
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Anyone who carried the Imperium was escorted by Lictors, and legally could torture and execute someone on demand if he were legally justified.
Blog text (28) -
The fasces was carried (it was ceremonial, so it was never actually used) by the "Lictors," the formal escorts of the high officers of Rome.
Blog text (28) -
The magistrate was followed by a group of lictors, each carrying the fasces to show their authority.
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As the crowd gathered, the lictors moved to create a path for the approaching official.
Surface Forms
Etymology
Lictor comes from Latin lictor, the name for a Roman official who carried the fasces, which means 'bundle of rods', as a sign of a leader's power. A lictor both protected the magistrate and showed his authority.