In Roman mythology, Caeculus (meaning "little blind boy", from caecus "blind")[1][2][3] was a son of Vulcan, and the legendary founder of Praeneste (modern Palestrina).[4]
King Caeculus appears in Book VII of Virgil's Aeneid as an ally of Turnus against Aeneas and the Trojans,[5] where he is said to be the "founder of Praeneste" and described as "the son of Vulcan, born among the rural herds and found upon the hearth".[6]
The myth concerning the birth of Caeculus and his divine parentage[7] is of great interest for the study of Latin religion. In the myth he is the nephew of two divine twin brothers (divi fratres) called the Depidii (or Digidii). They had a younger sister. One day while she was sitting by the hearth, a spark landed on her and she was impregnated. When the child was born, she exposed him near the temple of Jupiter, where he was found, lying next to a fire, by a group of girls (one version says that these girls were also sisters of the Depidii), who had come to fetch water from a nearby spring. The girls took the child to his uncles, the Depidii, who reared him.
After spending his childhood among shepherds, he gathered a band of youngsters of his age, and founded the city of Praeneste.
Caeculus was unharmed by a fire, caused by his casting doubt on the divinity of his ancestry. He also showed mastery over fire by starting and extinguishing another at his will. The smoke though damaged his eyes, which remained smaller than normal, hence his name, Caeculus, little blind one.
His story is reminiscent of the practise of ver sacrum and similar to that of Romulus and Remus the founders of Rome.[8]
Caeculus was claimed as the eponymous ancestor of the Roman gens Caecilia,[2][9] and also perhaps by the lesser known gens Caesia.[10]
^Paschalis, p. 267
^ abGrimal, p. 83
^De Vaan, Michiel (2008). Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages. Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series Volume 7. Leiden, Boston: Brill, 2008. p. 79.
^Smith, "Cae'culus".
^Virgil, Aeneid, 7.678 ff.
^Mandelbaum, p. 183, lines 894–897.
^Servius, Commentary on the Aeneid of Vergil, 7, 678; Schol. Veron. Aen. 7,681; Solin. 2, 9
^G. Dumezil La religion romaine archaique Paris, 1974, part I, chap.5
In Roman mythology, Caeculus (meaning "little blind boy", from caecus "blind") was a son of Vulcan, and the legendary founder of Praeneste (modern Palestrina)...
City: Proceedings of a One Day Colloquium held at Fransum, 23rd July 2007. Caeculus, 7. Leuven: Peeters. Gawlinski, L. (2007). "The Athenian Calendar of Sacrifices:...
who thrust his right hand into the fire to prove his loyalty to Rome. Caeculus and the founding of Praeneste. Manlius and the geese, about divine intervention...
following children: Cacus (Cacus was mentioned also as a child of Hephaestus) Caeculus Hephaestus was sometimes portrayed as a vigorous man with a beard and was...
who thrust his right hand into the fire to prove his loyalty to Rome. Caeculus and the founding of Praeneste. Manlius and the geese, about divine intervention...
origin of Praeneste to Ulysses, or to other fabled characters such as Caeculus, Telegonus, Erulus or Praenestus. The name probably derives from the word...
the Republic, the Caecilii traced their origin to a mythical personage, Caeculus, the founder of Praeneste. He was said to be the son of Vulcan, and engendered...
with invitations to settle in the new town: He mentions the instances of Caeculus at Praeneste and other settlements in Crete (Dreros, Hierapytna, Praisos...
of California Press, c1998 (online) [6] Cornell, 132–133: these include Caeculus, legendary founder of Praeneste: dynastic founders such as Sargon, Cyrus...
from the verb scando, scandere, scansus, "scale, climb" Aventinus Bubona Caeculus Candelifera BCh Cardea Catius pater BCh Cela, perhaps a title of Panda...
in the family Carabidae, containing the following species: Aepiblemus caeculus Belousov & Kabak, 1993 Aepiblemus marginalis Belousov & Kabak, 1997 "Aepiblemus...
with Economy", Papers on Mediterranean Archaeology, ed: Nijboer, A., J., Caeculus IV, 2001, pp. 118–121. Graham, Emma-Jayne; Sulosky Weaver, Carrie L. and...
Hemiolaus is a butterfly genus in the family Lycaenidae. Hemiolaus caeculus (Hopffer, 1855) Hemiolaus ceres (Hewitson, 1865) Hemiolaus cobaltina (Aurivillius...
S2CID 255297832. Porta, A. O.; Michalik, P.; Ramírez, M. J. (2022). "Caeculus fedrae sp. nov., a new fossil species of rake-legged mite (Acari: Caeculidae)...
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