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Sol Indiges was an early Roman sun god with a shrine on the Quirinal Hill and an annual sacrifice on August 9. He was also associated with Luna, the moon goddess, and had a shrine in the Circus Maximus. Roman poets often equated him with the Greek sun god Helios. Later, various sun cults were imported from Syria, notably by Emperor Elagabalus, who built a temple to Sol Invictus. Emperor Aurelian reestablished Sol's worship with a grand temple. Sol's worship as a protector of emperors and the empire became the chief imperial cult until the rise of Christianity. Sol Indiges was considered one of Rome's divine ancestors.12

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