Vestal Virgins

By Brian Freeman

The Vestal Virgins of ancient Rome was an unknown cult to me. The keepers of the scared flame of Rome are hardly studied. Many including myself were clueless to the reasonability the Virgins had on Roman history. The article “Vestal Virgins Chaste Keepers of the flame” by Melissa Barden Dowling is an outstanding article that shows the social importance and political power the Virgins had on the Ancient Roman society. To be a Vestal Virgin in ancient times was to be a super powered celebrity. If the virgins existed today they would probably be more popular and more influential than celebrities the likes of Britney Spears, Paris Hiltion and Jennifer Lopez. The origin Numa paid homage to the goddess whose priestess was the unwitting mother of Rome’s founder. The vestal virgin Rhea Silvia gave birth to Romulus after being raped by Mars, the god of war.