Haruspices

• The Haruspex (Plural: Haruspices) was a Roman Soothsayer who foretold future events.
• Soothsaying was practiced by both the Etruscans and the Romans, but already had a long tradition with the Babylonians and the Hittites.

The Soothsayer

• The Soothsayer or Haruspex practiced Divination from the entrails of sacrificed animals, the livers of sheep and chickens, the flight of birds, and where Lightning had struck or by interpreting other Omens.

Beware the Ides of March

• This was the warning given to Julius Caesar by the Roman Soothsayer, the Haruspex Spurinna.

Claudius (41-54 CE)

• The Roman Emperor Claudius opened a College for the study of Haruspicy.
• He could read Etruscan and was determined to preserve this tradition of Divination.

Theodosius I (379-395 CE)

• The End of Soothsaying.
• Theodosius I (379-395 CE) banned all the old religions in 380 CE and ended the tradition of Haruspicy as being too Pagan and conflicting with Christianity.