SEPTĬMONTĬUM, a Roman festival which was held in the month of
December. It was celebrated by the montani, or the inhabitants of the
seven ancient hills or rather districts of Rome, who offered on this
day sacrifices to the gods in their respective districts. These sacra
were, like the Paganalia, not sacra publica, but privata. They were
believed to have been instituted to commemorate the enclosure of the
seven hills of Rome within the walls of the city, and must certainly
be referred to a time when the Capitoline, Quirinal, and Viminal were
not yet incorporated with Rome.