Hymn To The Penates Comments

Didn't know what Penates were so I Googled a few places. They were Roman gods of the house and family. At first they were simply gods of the pantry. But because pagan gods liked to be worshiped by more and more people, eventually these gods expanded their domain to the entire household and then finally to the Roman state. They were to protect the livelihood, prosperity, storage, and welfare of the individual household, then later they served as guardians of the state and worshiping them was a patriotic duty. The number of Penates and who or what they precisely were was a puzzle even to the ancient Romans. Nevertheless, every house had a shrine with images of these unknown Gods and these images were worshiped at the family meal. The family offered portions of the regular meal or of special cakes, wine, honey, incense, and, more rarely, a blood sacrifice. The state as a whole worshiped the Penates Public a focal point of Roman patriotism and nationalism.