Lares

la'rez, in Roman mythology, a class of household deities. They are usually mentioned with the Penates; but the Penates were gods originally, while the Lares were regarded as the deified spirits of mortals. In each family the Lares were supposed to be the souls of ancestors who watched over the welfare of their descendants. There were also public Lares, two in number, who guarded the unity of the state. If not respected and propitiated, the Lares, both of the home and of the state, were powerful to bring evil upon offenders.