A Romano-Celtic temple or is a sub-class of Roman temple found in the north-western Celtic provinces of the Roman Empire. They were the main places of worship in Gallo-Roman religion. Romano-Celtic temples differ from classical Roman temples, and evidence shows they had much continuity with earlier Celtic temples. Many were built on earlier sacred sites of the Celtic religion.
Terminology
In Great Britain, the term Romano-British temple is often used for these temples, and Gallo-Roman temple for sites in Gaul.
In French, Spanish, and German scholarship, the term fanum is used to refer to Celtic temples of the Roman empire. This term was borrowed by archeologists from the Latin word for the sacred plot of land on which a temple was built.
The Gaulish term for these temples was nemeton, which originally signifed a sacred grove. This term was used to refer to Celtic temples until the Christianization of Gaul.
Layout and location
The layout of Romano-Celtic temples differed from classical Roman temples. While classical temples were usually rectangular buildings with a portico, the Romano-Celtic temple was usually square or octagonal, with an ambulatory. This is believed to have been influenced by earlier Celtic wooden temples, many sites showing continuity in their layout. The ambulatory was probably meant to accommodate a Celtic rite of circumambulation. Many temples were built on earlier sacred sites. While almost all classical temples were built at towns and cities, almost all 650 Romano-Celtic temples were built in the countryside or smaller settlements.
It consisted of a box-like or tower-like main room (cella), of variable height, surrounded by an ambulatory or veranda built from stone, wood or both. While usually square or octagonal, circular and triangular layouts are also known. In size they vary greatly, with the outer ambulatory ranging from 8.5m to 22m in length and the cella from 5.1m to 16m. The cella, accessible from a door on one side, was usually roofed, as was the ambulatory, though the cella tower may rise above the height of the surrounding ambulatory or be pitched so that the two join together. Ambulatories may be open or be enclosed by a short wall or wall-and-colonnade. Some features of Classical Roman temples are included in the architecture, such as Roman-style columns as part of the outer wall.
The internal features included mosaic floors and decorative wall paintings.
The main temple building usually stood within a sacred enclosure (temenos) along with other religious structures, which was usually marked off by a wall, palisade and ditch.
Religious function
Temples, as centres of religious ceremonies and festivals, may have attracted people from surrounding areas. Each temple would be dedicated to one or more gods, with a statue in the cella. Votive offerings such as coins, pottery, statues, miniature votive figurines can be found both within the building and in the surrounding ambulatory and temenos, suggesting that access may be available throughout the structure and that the external architectural components also serve a purpose within the ritual environment of the temple. The temple at Woodeaton produced evidence for multiple hearths within the temple superstructure, suggesting the use of fire within the religious worship at that site.
A priest would perform religious ceremonies within the temple or outside in the enclosure, although the exact daily role they played in Romano-Celtic temples is not well understood. Performing sacrifice, prayers, and overseeing festivals are key features of priesthoods in the Roman Empire. In Aquae Sulis (modern Bath, England), an altar was dedicated by a haruspex; this religious position may have been utilised elsewhere in Britannia. Fragments of priestly regalia have been found in British excavations: a copper alloy sceptre-cap from the temple at Farley, a chained headpiece or "crown" at Wanborough and a bronze crown with an adjustable band at Hockwold cum Wilton.
In Gaul
Gallo-Roman Temples have been found throughout the region settled by the ancient Gauls, including France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Germany, in both cities and the countryside. These temples would have been closed at the end of the 3rd century by late Roman imperial anti-pagan laws, but in reality many were progressively abandoned during this period, their cults having been neglected or the locality been depopulated.