Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

MATRIM ONTIU M. MvATRIMONIU'T. I 743
that, at least during the imperial period, the man parent violence from the arms 6f her mother, or
put a ring on the finger of his betrothed, as a of the person who had to give her away. On her
pledge of his fidelity. This ring was probably, like way she was accompanied by three boys dressed inl,
all rings at this time, worn on the left hand, and the praetexta, and whose fathers and mothers were
on the finger nearest to the smallest. (Macrob. Sat. still alive (pcatrini et snztrim'i). One of them car.
vii. 13.) The last point to be fixed was the day ried before her a torch of white thorn (spinza) or,
on which the marriage was to take place. To- according to others, of pine wood; the two others
wards the close of the republic it had become cus- walked by her side supporting her by the arm.
tomary to betroth young girls when they were yet (Fest. s. v. Patrimzi et salaltinii; Varro, ap. Clscrichildren; Augustus therefore limited the time sinme, i. p. 117; Plin. H. r. xvi. 18.) The bride
during which a man was allowed to continue be- herself carried a distaff and a spindle with wool.
trothed to a girl (Suet. Aug. 34), and forbade men (Plin. H.-I N. viii. 48; Plt. Quaest. Ioron. p. 271.)
to be betrothed to girls before the latter had com- A boy called camillus carried in a covered vase
pleted their tenth year, so that the age of pubertas (ceCtera, cunerum, or cnamillum) the so called
being twelve years, a girl might not be compelled utensils of the bride and playthings for children
to be betrothed longer than two years. (Dion (crepundia, Fest. s. v. C'zmerant; Planut. Cistel. iii.
Cass. liv. p. 609, Steph.) 1. 5). Besides these persons who officiated on the
The Romans believed that certain days were occasion, the procession was attended by a numeunlfortunate for the performance of the marriage rots train of friends both of the bride and the briderites, either on account of the religious character of groom, whose attendance was called officium and
those days themselves, or on account of the days ad officiUa1 ven2ire. (Suet. Caloi. 25, Claud. 26.)
by which they were followed, as the woman had Plutarch (Quaest. Rom. init.) speaks of five waxto perform certain religious rites on the day after candles which were used at marriages; if these
her wedding, which could not take place on a dies were borne in the procession, it must have been to
ater. Days not suitable for entering upon matri- light the company which followed the bride; but
mony were the Calends, Nones, and Ides of every it may also be that they were lighted during the
month, all dies atri, the whole months of May marriage ceremony in the house of the bride.
(Ovid. Fast. v. 490; Plut. Quaest. Romn. p. 284) When the procession arrived at the house of the
and February, and a great number of festivals. bridegroom, the door of which was adorned with
(Macrob. Sat. i. 15; Ovid. Fast. ii. 557.)'Widows, garlands and flowers, the bride was carried across
on the other hand, might marry on days which the threshold by pro2mtbi, i. e. men, who had only
were inauspicious for maidens. (Macrob. Sat. 1. c.; been married to one women, that she might not
Pint. Quacest. Rons. p. 289.) knock against it with her foot, which would have
On the wedding-day, which in the early times been an evil omen. (Plut. Quzaest. Romn. p. 271, c;
was never fixed upon without consulting the au- Plant. Cbs. iv. 4. 1.) Before she entered the
spices (Cic. de Div. i. 16; Val. Max. ii. 1. ~ 1), house, she wound wool arotnd the door-posts of,
the bride was dressed in a long white robe with a her new residence, and anointed them with lard
purple fringe or adorned with ribands. (Jitv. ii. (ctleps suslls) or wolf's fat (adCeps luspins, Serv.
124.) This dress was called tunica recta (Plin. ad Alen. iv. 19; Plin. IJ. AN xxviii. 9). The
_I. N. viii. 48), and was bound round the waist husband received her with fire and water, which
with a girdle (coronac., cingsezta, or zona, Fest. s. v. the woman had to touch. This was either a
CYinsulo), which the husband had to untie in the symbolic purification (for Serv. oal Aen. iv. 104.
e,,elaini. The bridal veil, called flammeum, was says that the newly married couple washed their
of a bright-yellow colour (Plin. II. N. xxi. 8; feet ill this water), or it was a symbolic expression
Schol. ad Jsuv. vi. 225), and her shoes likewise. of welcome, as, the interdicere aqua et igni was the
(Catull. lxii. 10.) IIcHer hair was divided on this formula for banishment. The bride saluted her
occasion with the point of a spear. (Ovid. Fast. ii. husband with the words: ubi tN Cacius, ego Caia.
560; Arnob. adv. Gent. ii. p. 91; Plut. Qzuscst. (Plut. Quaest. iRom. 1. c.) After she had entered
Roan. p. 285.) the house with distaff and spindle, she was placed
The only form of marriage which was celebrated upon a sheepskin, and here the keys of the house
with solemn religious rites, was that by confarrea. were delivered into her hands. (Fest. s. v. Claris.)
tioe; the other forms being mere civil acts, were A repast (cocsn iaptialis) given by the husband to
probably solemnised without any religious cere- the whole train of relatives and friends who acmony. In the case of a marriage by confarreatio, companied the bride, generally concluded the so.
a sheep was sacrificed, and its skin was spread lemnity of the day. (Plaut. Cure. v. 2. 61; Suet.
over two chairs, upon which the bride and bride- Calig. 25.) Many ancient writers mention a very
groom sat down with their heads covered. (Serv. polular song, Talasius or Talassio, which was sung
ad 4erz. iv. 374.) Hereupon the marriage was at weddings (Plitt. Quasest. Rome. 1. c.; Liv. i. 9;
completed by pronouncing a solemn formula or Dionys. Ant. 1Rom. ii. 31; Fest. s. v. Talassionems);
prayer, after which another sacrifice was offered. but whether it was sung during the repast or
A cake was made of far and the qmole salsa pre- during the procession is not quite clear, though we
pared by the Vestal virgins (Serv. ad Vi7y. Eclog. may infer from the story respecting the origin of
viii. 82), and carried before the bride when she the song, that it was sung while the procession.was conducted to the residence of her husband. It was advancing towards the house of the husband.
is uncertain whether this cake is the same as that It may easily be imagined that a solemnity like
which is called mastaceusmz (Juv. Sat. vi. 201), and that of marriage did not take place among the
which was in the evening distributed among the merry and humorous Italians without a variety of
guests assembled at the house of the young hus- jests and railleries, and Ovid (Fast. iii. 675) menband. tions obscene songs which were sung before the
The bride was conducted to the house of her door of the bridal apartment by girls, after the
husband in the evening. She was talcen with ap- company had left, These songs were probably the
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