DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.49928#0070
Tradition made their headdress one of six plaits, like those of i
a bride, wrapped round their head, but these seem to have
been supplanted by six ribands which were wrapped closely |
round the head like a cap {infula, or capital, cf. figs, n, 12),
from which the ends hung down as vittae.
Figs, ii, 12.—Statues of Vestal Virgins.
From the Atrium Vestae in the Forum, Rome, where it
now stands. Roman, Second Century a.d.
Baumeister, Denkmaler, figs. 2169, 2170.
Smith, Diet, of Antiquities, ii., p. 943.
Seyffert, Diet., p. 688.
Lanciani, Ancient Rome, pp. 138, 141.
The Atrium A^estae was the Convent of the Vestal Virgins,
and lay near the round Temple of Vesta in the Forum at the
foot of the Palatine Hill.
When the remains were excavated in 1883, fifteen marble
pedestals with eulogistic inscriptions concerning the vestales
maximae, or heads of the college, eleven life-size statues, and
twenty-seven busts and heads were brought to light. Figs. 11,
12 were found at this time, and are both statues of Vestales
Maximae, fig. 12 being that of Flavia Publicia. Both are
dressed in a long shift {stold) girded with woollen cord, a suffi-
bulum or hood {cf. fig. 10), and a cloak {pallium), and have
their hair tightly bound in the capital or infula described
above (fig. 10).
Fig. 13.—Coop with the Pulli or Augur’s Birds.
Relief, now lost, from a drawing in Graevius’
Thesaurus, v., p. 322.
Daremberg et Saglio, Diet., figs. 631, 1267.
Seyffert, Dictionary of Antiquities, p. 89.
Guhl and Koner, Zz/i? cy Greeks and Romans, fig. 496.
The auspicia could be taken either from the observation of
heaven, or the flight of birds, or more conveniently from the
manner in which they pecked up corn thrown to them. The
omen which was most lucky, the tripudium solistim/um, was ob-
tained when they ate so eagerly that the corn fell from their
beaks.
Fig. 14.—Augustus as Augur with the lituus.
Relief on the face of an Altar to the Genius of
Augustus. Inscribed avgvsto xiii. m. plavtio silvano
cos. (2 b.c.). In the Uffizi, Florence, formerly in the
Valle Collection.
Mongez et Wicar, Galerie de Florence, Pl. 4.
Daremberg et Saglio, Diet., fig. 632.
Dutschke, Bildwerke in Ober-Italien, iii. 218.
Seyffert, Diet., p. 86.
The relief contains three figures, Augustus in the centre,
the other two being L. Caesar and Livia. The former is
represented in the dress of an augur, wearing the toga drawn
over his head in Roman sacrificial fashion. The toga worn was
like that of the other priests ornamented with a coloured border
{praetexta}. Servius, however, states that they also wore the
trabea, a small primitive form of toga. The curved staff which
Augustus holds is the lituus, which was used for dividing the
part of heaven chosen for observation {templum, cf. fig. 15)
into regiones. The bird on the left is one of the pulli or
sacred fowl {cf. fig. 13).
Fig. 15.—The Vault of Heaven divided for Augury
into Houses.
Nissen, Das Templum, Pl. 4.
In taking auspices the augur looked towards the south, and
with his wand {lituus, fig. 14) marked off the division of the
sky {templum} in which he intended to watch from his tent
between midnight and daybreak. The omens looked for on.
such occasions would chiefly be flashes of lightning and the
fall of meteoric stones. For determining the special meaning
of the omen the sky was divided in Etruscan fashion into·
sixteen “houses” or regiones. The “House of Jupiter” was·
at the zenith in the centre of all the houses. Beginning the
counting with the north and moving to the east, the first
divisions passed through are the luckiest, the sixteenth being
the worst. The reason for this is that the observer, facing
south, had all omens on the eastern side on his left, the lucky
hand, and all the western on the right, the unlucky side..
3S
a bride, wrapped round their head, but these seem to have
been supplanted by six ribands which were wrapped closely |
round the head like a cap {infula, or capital, cf. figs, n, 12),
from which the ends hung down as vittae.
Figs, ii, 12.—Statues of Vestal Virgins.
From the Atrium Vestae in the Forum, Rome, where it
now stands. Roman, Second Century a.d.
Baumeister, Denkmaler, figs. 2169, 2170.
Smith, Diet, of Antiquities, ii., p. 943.
Seyffert, Diet., p. 688.
Lanciani, Ancient Rome, pp. 138, 141.
The Atrium A^estae was the Convent of the Vestal Virgins,
and lay near the round Temple of Vesta in the Forum at the
foot of the Palatine Hill.
When the remains were excavated in 1883, fifteen marble
pedestals with eulogistic inscriptions concerning the vestales
maximae, or heads of the college, eleven life-size statues, and
twenty-seven busts and heads were brought to light. Figs. 11,
12 were found at this time, and are both statues of Vestales
Maximae, fig. 12 being that of Flavia Publicia. Both are
dressed in a long shift {stold) girded with woollen cord, a suffi-
bulum or hood {cf. fig. 10), and a cloak {pallium), and have
their hair tightly bound in the capital or infula described
above (fig. 10).
Fig. 13.—Coop with the Pulli or Augur’s Birds.
Relief, now lost, from a drawing in Graevius’
Thesaurus, v., p. 322.
Daremberg et Saglio, Diet., figs. 631, 1267.
Seyffert, Dictionary of Antiquities, p. 89.
Guhl and Koner, Zz/i? cy Greeks and Romans, fig. 496.
The auspicia could be taken either from the observation of
heaven, or the flight of birds, or more conveniently from the
manner in which they pecked up corn thrown to them. The
omen which was most lucky, the tripudium solistim/um, was ob-
tained when they ate so eagerly that the corn fell from their
beaks.
Fig. 14.—Augustus as Augur with the lituus.
Relief on the face of an Altar to the Genius of
Augustus. Inscribed avgvsto xiii. m. plavtio silvano
cos. (2 b.c.). In the Uffizi, Florence, formerly in the
Valle Collection.
Mongez et Wicar, Galerie de Florence, Pl. 4.
Daremberg et Saglio, Diet., fig. 632.
Dutschke, Bildwerke in Ober-Italien, iii. 218.
Seyffert, Diet., p. 86.
The relief contains three figures, Augustus in the centre,
the other two being L. Caesar and Livia. The former is
represented in the dress of an augur, wearing the toga drawn
over his head in Roman sacrificial fashion. The toga worn was
like that of the other priests ornamented with a coloured border
{praetexta}. Servius, however, states that they also wore the
trabea, a small primitive form of toga. The curved staff which
Augustus holds is the lituus, which was used for dividing the
part of heaven chosen for observation {templum, cf. fig. 15)
into regiones. The bird on the left is one of the pulli or
sacred fowl {cf. fig. 13).
Fig. 15.—The Vault of Heaven divided for Augury
into Houses.
Nissen, Das Templum, Pl. 4.
In taking auspices the augur looked towards the south, and
with his wand {lituus, fig. 14) marked off the division of the
sky {templum} in which he intended to watch from his tent
between midnight and daybreak. The omens looked for on.
such occasions would chiefly be flashes of lightning and the
fall of meteoric stones. For determining the special meaning
of the omen the sky was divided in Etruscan fashion into·
sixteen “houses” or regiones. The “House of Jupiter” was·
at the zenith in the centre of all the houses. Beginning the
counting with the north and moving to the east, the first
divisions passed through are the luckiest, the sixteenth being
the worst. The reason for this is that the observer, facing
south, had all omens on the eastern side on his left, the lucky
hand, and all the western on the right, the unlucky side..
3S