In Ancient Rome, marriage was a sacred part of both their history and their culture. Weddings were usually large, loud events that brought together the peoples of Rome in celebration and happy matrimony. It was unlike weddings today filled with partying and love between the sponsus and sponsa (fiance and fiancee) -- weddings were more of an arrangement between two families with no possibility of divorce for the first five centuries in Rome.
There are many various types of weddings, each individualized with their own name and customs to cater to every level of the social hierarchy and social class. Three of the most prominent and well-known types of weddings will be discussed in this article: confarreatio, usus, and coemptio. You will also be introduced to many other traditions regarding vestis (clothing), hymnis (hymns), and other rules that will blow your mind away!
Confarreatio
Confarreatio was the most elaborate, religious marriage. This was also the strictest of the types, as it was a requirement for those who belonged in the upper class, or the patricians and priests of ancient Rome. The wedding would only be allowed to commence as long as there was good “omnia'' or omens, such as the lack of earthquakes or other natural disasters. If weather conditions were clear, the betrothed would then sign the tabulae nuptiales, the marriage contract where the sponsa’s dowry would be denoted. Those wed under confarreatio were united by the pronuba (matron that was married to her first husband) by joining their right hands with ten witnesses. After, the bride and groom would share a spelt cake, or panis farreus in Latin. The Latin phrase for spelt cake is actually where this sacred rite donned its name! The remainder of the cake was then given to Jupiter as a bloodless offering as a symbol of their future life together dedicated to the deity. A public procession that anyone can watch called deductio follows - which involves the taking of the bride to the house of the husband, with distaff and a spindle (emblems of domestic life) carried behind the bride. During deductio, lewd and lascivious verses, known as versus Fescennini in Latin, were sung to the Sabine god Talassius or Talassio. These are also known as teasing songs or poems sung at weddings. The Latin word “feliciter” is said during this procession to say “congratulations or good luck!” to the newly wed couple.
Usus
Usus is most known for being the plebian form of marriage, as well as the most informal marriage held together by mutual consent. There were no strict customs; usus only required the holding of right hands and the agreement to live together as husband and wife. Similarly, usus cannot be considered iustae nuptiae, or a just/legal marriage, because it was thought of as a promiscuous joining, and plebeians were not citizens. Unlike confarreatio, however, usus did not involve manus -- the power of a husband over his wife. With this “sine manu” option of this type of marriage, the women were actually put at the same status as her children would be. The wife was able to remain under the power of her father, rather than her new husband. Correspondingly, the wife could remain a member of her own father's family and even hold property if she agrees to stay away from her husband for a total of three days and three nights each year at her father’s house. This procession is known as trinoctium. All in all, many would deem this form of marriage, usus, to be the most similar to that of today’s common-law marriage traditions.
Coemptio
This third form of marriage, coemptio, is also known as a mock-sale marriage. The wedding ceremony involved a fictitious sale by which the pater familias (male head of the family) of the bride transferred her to the man in marriage -- a transfer or selling of property. The bride was then placed under the ownership or “manus” of her husband in exchange for the payment of nummus usus, a single penny, laid in scales held by a scale-holder. Coemptio required five witnesses and involved a dowry. This form of marriage was normally performed when one party of the marriage was in the plebeian social class.
Despite the various types of marriages that were present in ancient Roman culture, the betrothed man often brought gifts for his bride. This gift was usually a ring, which we now know more commonly as an engagement or wedding ring. Did you know that the anulus/annulus, or the wedding ring, was worn on the ring finger (fourth finger of the left hand) because it was believed that there was a vein that went from the finger straight to the heart? No wonder both engagement rings and wedding rings are still worn on this finger today. This one trivial example simply goes to show how prevalent Roman culture still is today!
If you are interested in more information about the traditions of ancient Roman weddings, please be sure to check out Megan Jung’s amazing article about bridal fashion, or click on my website about the different types of Roman weddings! (https://romanweddinglatin.wixsite.com/home)
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