Sunday, November 27, 2011

Aequitas

Aequitas (genitive aequitatis) is the Latin concept of justice, equality, conformity, symmetry, or fairness. It is the origin of the English word "equity".[1] In ancient Rome, it could refer to either the legal concept of equity, or fairness between individuals.[2]
Cicero defined aequitas as "tripartite": the first, he said, pertained to the gods above (ad superos deos) and is equivalent to pietas, religious obligation; the second, to the Manes, the underworld spirits or spirits of the dead, and was sanctitas, that which is sacred; and the third pertaining to human beings (homines) was iustitia, "justice".[3]
During the Roman Empire, Aequitas as a divine personification was part of the religious propaganda of the emperor, under the name Aequitas Augusti, which also appeared on coins.[4] She is depicted on coins holding a cornucopia and a balance scale (libra), which was more often a symbol of "honest measure" to the Romans than of justice.[5]

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