In ancient Rome, there were priestesses serving the goddess Vesta. The female vestal women of Ancient Rome, who occupied this position, enjoyed immediate privileges in society, personal inviolability, and received high salaries. In the media, the main emphasis in the description of their lifestyle is placed on the presence of virginity in the vestal, which, although it is the main feature of this profession, does not reveal most of its specific features.
The origin of the priestly cult of Vesta and its features
As noted above, vestals are the priestesses of the goddess Vesta, whose origin in worship has been lost for centuries. It is only known that he is related to the Greek cult of the sacred fire, guarded by the old virgins.
The Vestal Institute is supposed to have created Numa Pompilius, who streamlined religious dogmas and established the duties of the Vestals, such as maintaining and lighting a sacred fire, storing shrines and private treasures, and offering sacrifices to the goddess Vesta.
Terms of selection of candidates for the post of vestal
The cult was served continuously by six vestal women, selected during the life rotation by drawing of lots of twenty healthy girls aged 6-10 years, who came from patrician families and constantly lived with families in Italy.
In the process of initiation, the young vestal passed through the atrium of Vesta, where she underwent a hair cutting procedure as an offering to a sacred tree, on which her hair was then hung. The age of the sacred tree in Rome during the era of Pliny the Elder has already passed over half a millennium. After that, the dedicated vestal, dressed in all white, received the second name, “Beloved,” added to her Roman name, and began her studies in the sanctuary.
She had to go through the stages of training, service and mentoring, a total of 30 years. After the end of the service, the vestal became free and could even get married, but when she received the status of a Roman matron, she lost all her rights and privileges.
Rights and obligations of the vestal as a priestess
Maintaining the sacred fire of Vesta in Rome was regarded as the Light of the empire, it was extinguished only on the first day of the new year, its attenuation was considered a disaster similar to the imperial collapse. In this case, the fire had to be planted manually by rubbing a tree against a tree, and the guilty vestal was punished with flagellation. Therefore, the vestals of Ancient Rome, in the minds of the Romans, were servants of the goddess, rejoicing for the prosperity of the empire.
Vestals were presented with the richest gifts, which they disposed of at their own discretion. They owned huge estates that brought them great income; emperors offered them generous gifts. In addition, when the vestal took office, she received a large sum from the family.
Insulting the vestal - even at the level of domestic rudeness - was punishable by death.
Another image of the vestal is the image of the divine judge. In case of an accidental meeting with the convict, the last was granted pardon.
Virginity as a guarantee of divine purity
The basis of the priestly cult of Vesta was the virginity of the priestesses, the personification of the immaculate divine purity that surrounds and protects the sacred fire. Vestals were fully aware of this, vowing integrity when entering into service to the goddess.
The punishment of the vestal for breaking the vow of celibacy was extremely severe - it was punished by burial alive. However, in Rome, the execution of the vestal was considered a grave sin, so the accused was carried through the city, tied with belts to a seat, in a deaf stretcher. The surrounding people perceived the fact of what was happening as a grave grief. At the burial site, a small tunnel-shaped depression was dug up, upon arrival to which the vestal was untied by slaves, and after reading the prayer, the high priest descended silently into the tunnel, where then it was walled up with a one-day supply of food and water.
I must say that there were frequent cases and justifications of vestals. After the trial, they received a warrant adjusting their appearance and manners.
The daily and social life of the vestal
The Vestal House, together with the Vesta Temple, constituted a single functional complex. It is known that it was an atrium surrounded by two-story porticoes on columns. The premises were built of brick and built on two floors, no different from a simple Roman residential building. However, the presence of a huge spacious hall for ceremonial receptions suggests that the building was also used for administrative purposes.
Vestals were welcome and obligatory guests at the main celebrations held in Rome. During the procession through the streets of the city, in front of the vestal there was always a lictor who performed ceremonial and security functions. On some occasions the vestals rode in chariots.
The image of the vestal in art
Vestals in art have been known since the time of the cult. The most famous of them posed for the sculptors, and their finished statues were installed in the reception rooms, including in the house of the vestal themselves.
Vestals are priestesses and servants of the goddess, so they wore the same clothes, which were a long tunic of white color and a bandage worn on the head. In such attire, artists often depicted on canvases.
The literature also captured the image of a vestal devoted to his ideals. Fidelity to their cult and the people of Rome is fully revealed in one of the most sensational novels of the last century. The novel “Vestalka” Nikolai Nikonov covered almost a quarter of a century in action; he was the first to write a book on the life of priestesses in the bosom of a heroic era. This book, written in two parts, has been repeatedly attacked by the public and criticized for its "gloomy" plot and the straightforwardness of the narrative. However, Nikonov nevertheless became a symbol of the past militaristic era, whose Vestal raised one of the most tragic problems in the history of mankind - the confrontation of women and war.