by Natasha Sheldon

Created on: November 01, 2007   Last Updated: September 07, 2010

Roman marriage was a social institution designed to strengthen bonds between families rather than a way of uniting two people in love. It required little more than an agreement for a couple to live together. The legalities were traditionally complimented with archaic rituals, to purify and bless the couple and ensure the marriage's success.  Many of the elements of the ceremony and bridal customs survive in the modern western wedding traditions of today.

Forms of Roman Marriage

Usus. The simplest form which required only constant cohabitation for a year. Coemptio.A symbolic purchase of the bride by her husband. The Confarreati or strict form marriage saw a wife fully absorbed by her husband's family, totally under his control or manus and was required for the upper classes.

The Bride's Outfit

The wedding ceremony would severe the bride from her father's house and so the protective numen. Therefore, until she was formerly accepted by as part of her husband's household, she was in a spiritual no man's land and therefore vulnerable. The bride's wedding outfit was designed to protect her during this transitional phase.

Traditionally, the main garments would consist of a plain white woollen smock, the tunica recta with a white stola over the top. Around her waist would be a woollen sash tied with a Hercules knot, designed toward of evil. The only elements of colour would be the flammeum or veil and the shoes, both of which would be saffron in colour, a colour considered lucky.

Preparing for the Wedding

Firstly, the day for the wedding had to be carefully selected. Certain dates or times of the year were taboo. April and June were the favoured months for marriages. There were also dates in the Roman calendar when marriage was expressly forbidden, usually during festivals to appease the dead, notably in February and May.

The essential preliminary of the ceremony would be the taking of the auspices by the auspex, in order to gauge divine approval for the marriage. The auspex would not necessarily have been a professional diviner but a cross between priest and the best man. The haruspexices could also be taken from the entrails of the sheep customarily sacrificed as a preliminary to a confarreatio marriage

The Wedding Ceremony

Once it was certain conditions were favorable to the marriage, the ceremony would commence. If a strict format was followed, the gods would have been called upon: Janus as the god of thresholds, openings and closings, Juno Pronuba as goddess

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