VESTĀLES, the virgin priestesses of Vesta, who ministered in her
temple and watched the eternal fire. Their existence at Alba Longa is
connected with the earliest Roman traditions, for Silvia the mother
of Romulus was a member of the sisterhood; their establishment in
the city, in common with almost all other matters connected with
state religion, is generally ascribed to Numa, who selected four,
two from the Titienses and two from the Ramnes; and two more were
subsequently added from the Luceres, by Tarquinius Priscus according
to one authority, by Servius Tullius according to another. This
number of six remained unchanged to the latest times. They were
originally chosen (_capere_ is the technical word) by the king,
and during the republic and empire by the pontifex maximus. It was
necessary that the maiden should not be under six nor above ten
years of age, perfect in all her limbs, in the full enjoyment of
all her senses, patrima et matrima [PATRIMI], the daughter of free
and freeborn parents who had never been in slavery, who followed
no dishonourable occupation, and whose home was in Italy. The Lex
Papia ordained that when a vacancy occurred the pontifex maximus
should name at his discretion twenty qualified damsels, one of whom
was publicly (_in concione_) fixed upon by lot, an exemption being
granted in favour of such as had a sister already a vestal, and of
the daughters of certain priests of a high class. The above law
appears to have been enacted in consequence of the unwillingness of
fathers to resign all control over a child, and this reluctance was
manifested so strongly in later times, that in the age of Augustus
_libertinae_ were declared eligible. The casting of lots moreover
does not seem to have been practised if any respectable person
came forward voluntarily, and offered a daughter who fulfilled the
necessary conditions. As soon as the election was concluded, the
pontifex maximus took the girl by the hand and addressed her in a
solemn form. After this was pronounced she was led away to the atrium
of Vesta, and lived thenceforward within the sacred precincts, under
the special superintendence and control of the pontifical college.
The period of service lasted for thirty years. During the first ten
the priestess was engaged in learning her mysterious duties, being
termed _discipula_, during the next ten in performing them, during
the last ten in giving instructions to the novices, and so long as
she was thus employed she was bound by a solemn vow of chastity. But
after the time specified was completed, she might, if she thought
fit, throw off the emblems of her office, unconsecrate herself
(_exaugurare_), return to the world, and even enter into the marriage
state. Few however availed themselves of these privileges; those who
did were said to have lived in sorrow and remorse (as might indeed
have been expected from the habits they had formed); hence such a
proceeding was considered ominous, and the priestesses for the most
part died, as they had lived, in the service of the goddess. The
senior sister was entitled _Vestalis Maxima_, or _Virgo Maxima_,
and we find also the expressions _Vestalium vetustissima_ and _tres
maximae_. Their chief office was to watch by turns, night and day,
the everlasting fire which blazed upon the altar of Vesta, its
extinction being considered as the most fearful of all prodigies, and
emblematic of the extinction of the state. If such misfortune befell,
and was caused by the carelessness of the priestess on duty, she
was stripped and scourged by the pontifex maximus, in the dark and
with a screen interposed, and he rekindled the flame by the friction
of two pieces of wood from a _felix arbor_. Their other ordinary
duties consisted in presenting offerings to the goddess at stated
times, and in sprinkling and purifying the shrine each morning with
water, which according to the institution of Numa was to be drawn
from the Egerian fount, although in later times it was considered
lawful to employ any water from a living spring or running stream,
but not such as had passed through pipes. When used for sacrificial
purposes it was mixed with _muries_, that is, salt which had been
pounded in a mortar, thrown into an earthen jar, and baked in an
oven. They assisted moreover at all great public holy rites, such as
the festivals of the Bona Dea, and the consecration of temples; they
were invited to priestly banquets, and we are told that they were
present at the solemn appeal to the gods made by Cicero during the
conspiracy of Catiline. They also guarded the sacred relics which
formed the _fatale pignus imperii_, the pledge granted by fate for
the permanency of the Roman sway, deposited in the inmost adytum,
which no one was permitted to enter save the virgins and the chief
pontifex. What this object was no one knew; some supposed that it was
the palladium, others the Samothracian gods carried by Dardanus to
Troy, and transported from thence to Italy by Aeneas, but all agreed
in believing that something of awful sanctity was here preserved,
contained, it was said, in a small earthen jar closely sealed, while
another exactly similar in form, but empty, stood by its side. We
have seen above that supreme importance was attached to the purity of
the vestals, and a terrible punishment awaited her who violated the
vow of chastity. According to the law of Numa, she was simply to be
stoned to death, but a more cruel torture was devised by Tarquinius
Priscus, and inflicted from that time forward. When condemned by
the college of pontifices, she was stripped of her vittae and other
badges of office, was scourged, was attired like a corpse, placed in
a close litter and borne through the forum attended by her weeping
kindred, with all the ceremonies of a real funeral, to a rising
ground called the _Campus Sceleratus_, just within the city walls,
close to the Colline gate. There a small vault underground had been
previously prepared, containing a couch, a lamp, and a table with
a little food. The pontifex maximus, having lifted up his hands to
heaven and uttered a secret prayer, opened the litter, led forth
the culprit, and placing her on the steps of the ladder which gave
access to the subterranean cell, delivered her over to the common
executioner and his assistants, who conducted her down, drew up the
ladder, and having filled the pit with earth until the surface was
level with the surrounding ground, left her to perish deprived of all
the tributes of respect usually paid to the spirits of the departed.
In every case the paramour was publicly scourged to death in the
forum. The honours which the vestals enjoyed were such as in a great
measure to compensate for their privations. They were maintained at
the public cost, and from sums of money and land bequeathed from time
to time to the corporation. From the moment of their consecration
they became as it were the property of the goddess alone, and were
completely released from all parental sway, without going through
the form of _emancipatio_ or suffering any _capitis deminutio_.
They had a right to make a will, and to give evidence in a court of
justice without taking an oath. From the time of the triumviri each
was preceded by a lictor when she went abroad; consuls and praetors
made way for them, and lowered their fasces; even the tribunes of
the plebs respected their holy character, and if any one passed
under their litter he was put to death. Augustus granted to them all
the rights of matrons who had borne three children, and assigned
them a conspicuous place in the theatre, a privilege which they had
enjoyed before at the gladiatorial shows. Great weight was attached
to their intercession on behalf of those in danger and difficulty,
of which we have a remarkable example in the entreaties which they
addressed to Sulla on behalf of Julius Caesar, and if they chanced
to meet a criminal as he was led to punishment, they had a right to
demand his release, provided it could be proved that the encounter
was accidental. Wills, even those of the emperors, were committed
to their charge, for when in such keeping they were considered
inviolable; and in like manner very solemn treaties, such as that
of the triumvirs with Sextus Pompeius, were placed in their hands.
That they might be honoured in death as in life, their ashes were
interred within the pomoerium. They were attired in a stola over
which was an upper vestment made of linen, and in addition to the
infula and white woollen vitta, they wore when sacrificing a peculiar
head-dress called _suffibulum_, consisting of a piece of white cloth
bordered with purple, oblong in shape, and secured by a clasp. In
dress and general deportment they were required to observe the utmost
simplicity and decorum, any fanciful ornaments in the one or levity
in the other being always regarded with disgust and suspicion. Their
hair was cut off, probably at the period of their consecration:
whether this was repeated from time to time does not appear, but
they are never represented with flowing locks. The following cut
represents the vestal Tuccia who, when wrongfully accused, appealed
to the goddess to vindicate her honour, and had power given to her to
carry a sieve full of water from the Tiber to the temple. The form of
the upper garment is well shown.
[Illustration: Vestal Virgin. (From a Gem.)]