The book by the famous French historian Fustel de Coulanges is dedicated to the history of ancient civilizations. The author begins his research with a study of the religion of the ancients. In his opinion, “beliefs about the soul and death” underlie all customs, rituals, and the very way of life of ancient man. Analyzing the relationship between religion, laws and social institutions, Coulanges came to the conclusion that all more or less significant changes in the social life of Greece and Rome were due to changes occurring in the sphere of religious beliefs.