From Good Goddess to Vestal Virgins: Sex and Category in Roman Religion

228 Pages·1998·1.38 MB·english

by  Ariadne Staples

FROM GOOD GODDESS
TO VESTAL VIRGINS
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FROM GOOD GODDESS
TO VESTAL VIRGINS
Sex and category in Roman religion
Ariadne Staples
London and New York
First published 1998
by Routledge
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2004.
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001
© 1998 Ariadne Staples
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data
Staples, Ariadne
From Good Goddess to Vestal Virgins: Sex and Category in Roman
Religion/Ariadne Staples.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Women and religion—Rome. 2. Rome—Religion.
3. Women—Rome. 4. Rome—Social life and customs. I. Title
BL815.W6S73 1998
292.07′082–dc21 98–7381
ISBN 0-203-43547-8 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-203-74371-7 (Adobe eReader Format)
ISBN 0-415-13233-9 (Print Edition)
To the memory of my father
and to my mother
with my love
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CONTENTS
P reface ix
I NTRODUCTION 1
Part I The cult of Bona Dea
I NTRODUCTION TO CHAPTER 1 1 1
1 T HE CULT OF BONA DEA 1 3
Hercules and Cacus 1 7
Hercules and Bona Dea 2 4
The women’s goddess 3 0
‘A rite so ancient…’ 3 2
Bona Dea and the mysteries of Mithras 3 6
Opertanea Sacra 4 0
Wine, milk and honey 4 4
Part II The cults of Ceres and Flora
I NTRODUCTION TO CHAPTER 2 5 5
2 C ERES AND FLORA 5 7
Uneasy misogyny 5 9
Wife and prostitute in myth 6 2
Wife and prostitute in ritual 8 3
Part III Venus’ role in Roman religion
I NTRODUCTION TO CHAPTER 3 9 7
viii FROM GOOD GODDESS TO VESTAL VIRGINS
3 V ENUS 9 9
Venus Verticordia 10 3
Venus Obsequens and Venus Erycina 11 3
Venus and Bona Dea 12 5
Part IV The Vestals and Rome
I NTRODUCTION TO CHAPTER 4 12 9
4 T HE USES OF VIRGINITY: THE VESTALS AND ROME 13 1
The transvaluation of virginity 13 5
Virginity and the ritual representation of Roman integrity14 7
C ONCLUSION 15 7
N otes 16 3
B ibliography 19 5
I ndex 21 1
PREFACE
This book is a revised version of my doctoral dissertation. I should
like to begin by thanking the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust,
whose generous grant made it all possible.
Over the years many people have read various versions of differ-
ent chapters, and given generously of their time and expertise. This
book is immeasurably better for their insights. It is impossible to
thank them individually but I would like to record here my debt to
them all. Some however have gone so far beyond the call of duty or
even of friendship that I cannot let this opportunity pass by without
mentioning them with special gratitude.
John Crook steered me through the intricacies of Roman Law, a
subject with which I had very little acquaintance when I first went to
him for help. Under his guidance I realized that the law was both
fascinating and fun. His enthusiasm for his subject proved so infec-
tious that I decided to make law my life’s work. I should also like to
thank him for his unwavering belief that this study should be pub-
lished. It was that belief, and his insistence that I get on with the job
no matter what, that kept me at the task of revision when the added
burden of a Yale law school curriculum made it at times almost
intolerable.
I should also like to thank Mary Beard, who was a dedicated and
conscientious dissertation supervisor. It was while I was being
supervised by Keith Hopkins for a term that, encouraged by him, I
started reading works of anthropology; this would have been a very
different book if I hadn’t. Joyce Reynolds spent far more hours than
she should have reading various versions of different chapters and
her meticulous comments saved me from many an error. Richard
Saller and John Scheid both took time during their brief visits to