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In ancient Rome, the Vestal Virgins or Vestals (Latin: Vestālēs, singular Vestālis [wɛsˈtaːlɪs]) were priestesses of Vesta, virgin goddess of Rome's sacred hearth and its flame. The Vestals were unlike any other public priesthood.
The priestesses of Vesta, known as Vestal Virgins, administered her temple and sustained its sacred fire. The existence of Vestal Virgins in Alba Longa is connected with early Roman traditions, for the mother of Romulus' and Remus, Silvia, was a priestess of Vesta, impregnated by either Mars or Hercules. [16]
The Temple of Vesta was tended by the six Vestal Virgins, drawn between the ages of 6 and 10 from freeborn, or traditionally, aristocratic families. [5] They surrendered all legal connections with their birth family, and came under the authority of the pontifex maximus , Rome's chief priest.
The sacred fire of Vesta was a sacred eternal flame in ancient Rome.The Vestal Virgins, originally numbering two, later four, and eventually six, were selected by lot and served for thirty years, tending the holy fire and performing other rituals connected to domestic life—among them were the ritual sweeping of the temple on June 15 and the preparation of food for certain festivals.
Vestal Virgins (19 P) Pages in category "Ancient Roman priestesses" The following 10 pages are in this category, out of 10 total. This list may not reflect recent ...
Vestal Virgin Tuccia (Corradini sculpture) This page was last edited on 15 October 2022, at 13:39 (UTC). Text is available under the Creative Commons ...
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, ... Females could serve public cult as Vestal Virgins but few were chosen, ...
It was tended by the Vestal Virgins, a college of priestesses said to have been instituted by Numa Pompilius, the second King of Rome. Like the goddess herself, the Vestals swore an oath of celibacy, which they were obliged to keep for the duration of their service, a term of thirty years, although they were free to marry afterward.