RĪCĪNĬUM, an article of female dress, appears to have been a kind of
mantle, with a sort of cowl attached to it, in order to cover the
head. The _mavortium_, _mavorte_, or _mavors_ of later times was
thought to be only another name for what had formerly been called
ricinium.
RŌBĪGĀLĬA, a public festival in honour of the god Robigus, to
preserve the fields from mildew, is said to have been instituted by
Numa, and was celebrated April 25th. The sacrifices offered on this
occasion consisted of the entrails of a dog and a sheep, accompanied
with frankincense and wine: a prayer was presented by a flamen in the
grove of the ancient deity, whom Ovid and Columella make a goddess. A
god Robigus or a goddess Robigo is a mere invention from the name of
this festival, for the Romans paid no divine honours to evil deities.