Vestal Virgin

A sacred fire burned inside the temple of Vesta, and its flames signified the welfare of Rome. Vestal Virgins were young women who served the maiden goddess by tending this fire and safeguarding the hearth of the Roman state. They also cared for sacred objects and made a special salt cake used at public religious festivals. Their service belonged to Rome’s state religion, and the Vestals lived in the Hall of Vesta near the city’s centre.

The Vestal Virgins formed an institution, most likely in the early years of Rome’s Monarchy, rather than a single mythic figure with a story of its own. At first, two women served at one time. Their number later became four and then six. The pontifex maximus selected girls from patrician families, generally aged six to ten. Their temple service lasted thirty years, though some served for life. They have no divine parentage or birth story. In Roman myth, Vesta appears in the tale of Priapus, while the Vestal Virgins belong to her temple and protect Rome’s sacred fire.