Vestal Virgins In Ancient Rome

This thesis researches the Roman Vestal Virgins. The paper can be divided into two parts, the introduction and the main body.The introduction introduces the present national and foreign study conditions of Roman woman history, especially the study conditions of Roman Vestal Virgins' history.The main body included four parts. The first chapter talks about the cult of Vesta in Roman and development of the Roman Vestal Virgins. The second part discusses the various duties of Vestal Virgins, including their daily religions activities and duties within the Vestal temple and in Roman public. It shows the religion status of Vestal Virgins in Roman society. The third chapter analyses the virginity of Vestal Virgins, in the aspect of the intrinsic meaning, external manifest and the consequences of the lost of the virginity. It shows the specialty of Vestal Virgins. The fourth chapter analysis the legal status and economic status of Vestal Virgins, it manifests the specialty of Vestal Virgins in Roman society.It is noteworthy that in the Roman history, Vestal Virgins must keep their virginity more than thirty years. It is not denied that Vestal Virgins has a high status in the Roman society for her ritual duties, they are the "most liberated women in ancient Rome".