МАГИЯТА НА MANCIPATIO
THE MAGIC OF MANCIPATIO

Summary/Abstract: Many of the oldest Roman legal institutitues such as mancipatio, stipulatio and vindicatio contained elements that were interpreted as supernatural or religious, the completion of these practices required the use and the pronunciation of certain precise words, and ritual acts which had to be committed. The conventional wisdom has long been that the early history of Roman law was filled with curious ceremonies and ritual incantations; spears and sticks wielded to symbolically bestow rights and duties, while classical law was characterized by rational legal thinking. The author`s purpose is to examine the ritualistic and the supernatural elements of archaic Roman law and their influence in the classical period through the example of the institute of the mancipatio. In this contribution, prof. Tuori argues that through its archaic roots, Roman law had a strong supernatural element, though not as magic is commonly understood, but instead a belief in the transcendental. Additionally the aim of this article is to outline the understanding of the historical consciousness of Roman jurists.

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