IDES
There were three important days in each month of the old Roman calendar.
These days originally depended on the cycles of the moon but were
eventually "fixed" by law. "Kalendae" were the first days of each month,
originally the days of the new moon. "Nonae" were originally the days
of the half moon. And "idus" (the ides) was originally the day of the
full moon, eventually fixed at the 15th day of a month. Well, actually
the ides were the 15th day of March, May, July and October. For all
other months, the ides fell on the 13th. Go figure ...
In Act I of William Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar” a soothsayer warns the
doomed emperor to “beware the Ides of March”. Caesar ignores the
prophecy and is of course killed on the steps of the Capitol by a group
of conspirators on that very day.
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