A box or chest used in ancient Rome, especially one used for religious or ceremonial purposes.
From Latin 'cista' (chest, box), related to Greek 'kiste.' Used by Romans for storage of valuables and sacred objects, the term carries forward the ancient Indo-European root.
Roman 'cistae' often contained sacred objects and were so valued that they appear on coins and mosaics—finding one in an archaeological dig is like finding a time-locked treasure box containing the beliefs and rituals of an entire civilization.
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