religious Rome the solemnity of the agreement would be marked hv' a libation and an oath. Originally, the stipulation could be made with only one verb, spoudcrc. Tbat verb etymologically has the same root as the (ireek for offering a libation, OjTfvöco.'The libation in a context such as this presumes the use of an oath to perform. I bis religious v iew of'the origins of'explains the absence of any requirement of witnesses. Deities do not need human witnesses to judge the efficacy of an oath made to them. Besides, in any event, at this stage of dev elopment there were no courts to enforce the promise. It should be emphasized that on this explanation and the one I will giv e in a moment the stipuhitio did not simply arise from a preceeding generalized course of dealings between the parties. There was a special need. II d o turn to maiicipatio. d'be point of the ceremony is to protect the buyer against charges of theft. .\ similar explanation accounts for the use in the .\merican Wild West of written documents attesting the sale of cattle; otherwise there could he an accusation of rustling, lienee the recipient alone speaks. Hence the need for human witnesses: they alone can guarantee the safety of the recipient. I lence the absence of any oath in the mmicipatio. None is appropriate since the sole speaker is not the transferor hut the transferee who is under no obligation in the miniciputio. The buyer can onlv’ be attacked by third parties, and the nuincipatio is geared onlv’ against such an attack. But again we are at the prehistoric stage. Once more, appearances are deceptiv e and remain so at the early 5 See, e.g. the discussion in Kaser, tus, pp. 256ff. 157
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