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Palazzo Milzetti |
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I miti |
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THE COMPANY ROOM WITH PICTURE ABOUT NUMA POMPILIUS’ LIFE
| This room, together with the bed-room of Ulysses, belongs to the private flat of the counts
Milzetti. The walls are tapestried with light-blue fabric and there is a fire-place tiled
with faïence. The historical-mythologist decoration (frescos and bas-relieves) is about
stories connected with public life. In fact, on the vault there are pictures about Numa
Pompilius’ life and about Vestal Virgin’ history. Numa Pompilius was the pious second king of Rome, who succeeded the warlike Romulus, and with him started the institution of the Vestal Virgins. The goddess of the hearth, Vesta, was served by six virgins, who had to take vow of chastity and whose duty was to keep the sacred fire which took place of a cult statue. Those priestesses lived in the Atrium Vestae, near the Vesta’s temple a round building in the Roman Forum, where some holy mysterious things were preserved and where the holy fire had to be burning.The Vestal Virgin were girls of noble birth (usually of patrician rank) chosen when they were between six and ten years and taken (consecrated) by the Pontifex Maximus. The word "taken" is used, so it seems, because the Pontifex Maximus litterally took the virgin by the hand and lead her away from her parents. Numa Pompilius set the term of service for the holy virgin at thirty years: in the first decade they learnt their duties, in the middle decade they carried out what they had learnt, and in the third one they taught others. Once her term of service had been completed, a virgin was free to marry or start another lifestyle, but usually they were afflicted by regret and depression for the rest of their lives and they inspired pious reverence in the others, so that they kept faithful to their virginal promise until old age and death. When they went out of the temple they were preceded by lictors with the fasces, and if they accidentally met a criminal led to execution, his life was spared (after the virgin had sworn that the meeting had been involuntary, accidental and not planned). Anyone who went underneath a Vestal’s litter when she was being carried was put to death. Numa Pompilius gave them significant honours (one of which was the right to make a will during their father’s lifetime or to conduct their other business without a guardian), but their inflexible service involved renunciations and required a lot of care. If a Vestal left the fire burning out she was punished by beating till the blood flowed. This punishement had to be administrated by the Pontifex Maximus himself, with the offender naked, and in a dark place with a curtain set up between them. If the Virgin broke the vow of chastity she was condemned to death buried alive, near what is known as the Colline Gate, where there was a small room, with an entrance from above. One of the pictures of the Company room is the representation of a Vestal Virgin buried alive. She is lying on a bed, near a table. On the table there are some of the basic necessities of life such as bread, water in a bucket, milk and oil: it was considered impious to allow a body that is sacred to the holiest rites to die of starvation. The room is really small and scantily lighted up by an oil-lamp. The picture is a precious work of art of Felice Giani. Similar to the custom and ritual of the Vestal Virgins, in the Middle Age a new anchoretical feminine order developed in England. This spiritual religious current appeared freer and slightly different from the orders of the period, testifying a renascence of the women’s importance. Not being part of a regular order those recluses could live also with one or two companions and often they were buried near the city walls where their relations with the outside were frequent. As the Vestal Virgin they had to take vow of chastity and of obedience, but despite the severe and inflexible discipline both the religious women could enjoy particular intellectual advantages and overcome the mental invalidism, which was imposed to this sex in those times. |
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