The Vestal Virgins
—Chrissie

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            Of all of the Roman religious organizations, the Vestal Virgins might be the most recognized to a modern audience, though it is not well understood. The Vestal Virgins were priestesses of the goddess Vesta, who ruled over the hearth, home, and family. Her worship dates to the pre-Roman tribes who lived in Latium and around the Tiber River. The Romans believe she is the daughter of the god Saturn (patron of time, creation, wealth, and many other things) and the goddess Ops, Saturn’s sister and patroness of earth and fertility. As with many of the Roman pantheon, she became associated with a Greek goddess, Hestia.

            Vesta’s temple was in the Forum, near the Regia (the home and office of the Pontifex Maximus) and some other temples. The building was circular, possibly to reflect the shape of the traditional huts common to the area in prehistory. The legendary King Numa Pompilius is credited with building this temple, to house the priesthood he created. Unlike most temples dedicated to a specific god, Vesta’s focus point was not a statue of the goddess but a hearth fire burning brightly. This was the hearth fire of the Roman people and it was the Vestals’ sacred duty to never let it die out.

            At any given time there were at least eighteen Vestals, six novitiates, six actively conducting the duties, and six who taught the novices. It was a great honor for a family to have a daughter chosen to join the Vestals. Candidates were reviewed by the Pontifex Maximus; they had to be freeborn, have both parents still alive, and be free of any moral or physical defects. They were chosen before puberty, between the ages of six and ten. In the early years of Rome, they were exclusively chosen from patrician families, but it was opened to all Roman citizens later in the Republic. On entering the priesthood, the girl made a vow of virginity and chastity for the next thirty years, the usual term of service, though it was not uncommon for Vestals to stay with the temple after their term had ended. In exchange for giving up this large part of their life, a Vestal was granted rights held by no other Roman women: she was exempt from male guardianship, meaning she could conduct business and own and bequeath property in her own name. Vestals were also some of the few people in Rome whose persons were sacrosanct and inviolate—anyone who harmed a Vestal was metaphorically attacking the state and so could be immediately executed. On a less serious note, they had reserved seating at the games and at shows, and they were the only Romans allowed to travel in enclosed horse-drawn carriages. They were also accompanied by personal guards, called lictors, who protected them and enforced their right-of-way in public spaces. Lastly, they were some of the few people allowed to be buried within the sacred boundaries of the city, as their bodies were part of the state.

            While keeping the sacred hearth was the most important of the Vestals’ duties, it was not the only one. They produced the sacred salted flour used to consecrate sacrificial animals across the Roman cults, maintained the temple with both ritual and literal cleaning, collected water from sacred springs to be used ritually, and guarded the sacred storerooms which held artefacts important to Rome’s history and the wills of Roman citizens. They also oversaw the Vestalia, the feast of Vesta, from the 7 to 15 June each year and contributed to and participated in many other festivals year-round.

            When their term of service ended, they were permitted to leave the House of the Vestals and live on their own. They were provided a pension from the state and still maintained control over their money and property. Despite their previous vow of virginity, once a Vestal left, she was free to marry, if she chose. Even so, many chose to stay with the Temple, as it had been the only life they’d known for decades.

            Vestals who were found to be delinquent in their duties were punished according to the severity of the crime. The two things that would have the most effect on the state were to allow the fire to go out and to break her vow of chastity. Vesta’s fire represented the hearths of all of Rome and its loss was considered a terrible omen, so a Vestal who allowed the fire to go out was whipped to satisfy any anger from the gods, and the fire was relit with special materials and strictly followed rituals. If the fire went out spontaneously, through no fault of   its priestesses, the Pontifex Maximus and other priests investigated by reading auspices and conducting sacrifices to determine what portents or warnings the gods might be trying to convey. Once this was settled, the fire would be relit. In this case, the Vestal was not held to blame.

            A Vestal who broke her vow of virginity had metaphorically allowed an attack on Rome itself: the penetration of a Vestal was as bad as an enemy army penetrating the city’s walls. The man involved was publicly beaten to death by the Pontifex Maximus; the Vestal was buried alive. An underground chamber was prepared near the city walls wit ha table, chair, lamp, and a small amount of food and water. The woman was taken in closed cart to the site, where she had to willingly descend the ladder, creating a fiction that the state had not executed her. Even a Vestal who had broken her vows remained sacrosanct. There are no records of a Vestal refusing her punishment. But, this doesn’t mean they were never falsely accused, Vestals were used as scapegoats, their supposed negligence blamed for a loss of a battle or a drought.

            Elements of the worship of Vesta survived the Christianization of Rome: nuns take similar vows of chastity as her priestesses and the Virgin Mary took her place as the patroness of family and home. The Temple of Vesta was one of the last to be dismantled after Christianity became the official religion of Rome. Vesta’s flame was not extinguished until 391 CE.