Terrestrial Goddesses.
VESTA--HESTIA.
_Ques._ Who was Vesta?
_Ans._ She was the daughter of Saturn and Ops or Rhea, and was,
therefore, the sister of Jupiter. She was considered the guardian of
homes and firesides, and was a household divinity. Statues of Vesta
were placed by the Romans at the entrance of their houses; hence the
word vestibule, which we still use.
_Ques._ How is Vesta usually represented?
_Ans._ As seated on the ground, and leaning upon a drum, while various
domestic animals are grouped about her.
_Ques._ What was the character of this goddess?
_Ans._ She was esteemed very holy, and was the patroness of household
virtues. When Jupiter asked her to choose whatever gift she would,
Vesta desired that she might remain always a virgin, and receive the
first oblations in all sacrifices. Fire was the emblem of this
goddess, and in her temple, at Rome, a sacred fire was suspended in
the air, and watched by the Vestal Virgins. If this fire chanced to be
extinguished, all public and private business was suspended until the
accident had been expiated.
_Ques._ What laws existed with regard to the Vestal Virgins?
_Ans._ The penalties for neglect of their duties were severe. If the
sacred fire was extinguished through their negligence, they were
sometimes cruelly punished, and if any Virgin infringed the rule which
forbade her to marry, she was buried alive; being shut up in a vault
underground, with a lamp, and a little bread, wine, water and oil. The
sacred fire of Vesta was watched by these priestesses for nearly
eleven centuries. We are told that during this period, twenty Vestals
were condemned to death. Of these, seven were permitted to take their
own lives, thirteen suffered the terrible punishment we have
described. The last execution of this kind took place in the reign of
the emperor Domitian.
_Ques._ What were the privileges of the Vestal Virgins?
_Ans._ In recompense for these severe laws, the Vestals were treated
with extraordinary respect. They had the most honorable seats at games
and festivals, and even the consuls and magistrates gave them
precedence; their testimony was taken in trials without any form of
oath, and if they happened to meet a criminal going to execution, he
was immediately pardoned. Public documents of great importance were
generally entrusted to their care.
A striking instance of the respect felt for these Virgins, is related
by a Roman historian. Appius Claudius Audax, a consul who had rendered
himself obnoxious to the people, was attacked in the midst of a
triumphal procession by the plebeian tribunes, who endeavored to pull
him from his chariot. His daughter, who was a Vestal Virgin, ascended
the triumphal car, and took her place by her father's side. The tumult
immediately subsided, and the procession proceeded quietly to the
capital.
_Ques._ How many Vestal Virgins were there?
_Ans._ The number has been variously stated. Some authors mention six,
others seven, as the number actually in office. They were chosen
between the ages of six and ten; for ten years they were employed in
learning their duty; they remained in office for ten, and ten other
years were employed in instructing the novices. If there were seven
Vestals always in office, the entire number must have been twenty-one.
The thirty years being ended, the Vestals returned to their families.
The law then permitted them to marry, but it was considered
discreditable to do so.