The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-01-27
Marriage Among the Ancient Greeks.

MAII1uSo AtnVhS sho Ahoaoht ViooAo'
This admirable description Of the marriage
ceremony in ancient Greece is extracted from
Smal's translation of "The Ancient City,"
study of the religion, laws, and institutions
of Greece and Rome:
Among the Greeks the marriage ceremony
consisted, so to speak, of three acts. The
first took place before the hearth of the
father; the third before the hearth of the
husband; the second was the passage from
the one to the other.
l. In the paternal dwelling, in the pres
ence of the future bridegroom, the father,
surrounded ordinarily by his family, offers
sacrifice. The sacrifice concluded, he de-
clares-pronouncing a sacramental formula
that he gives his daughter to the young
man. This declaration is absolutely indis-
pensable to the marriage; for the young
girl would not be able to go at once to wor-
| ship at the hearth of her husband, if her
father had not already separated her from
the paternal hearth. To enable her to adopt
her new religion, she must be freed from
every bond that attaches her to her first re-
| ligion.
g. The young gi1l is carried to the house
of the husband. Sometimes the husband
himself conducts her. In certain cities the
duty of bringing her belongs to one Of those
men who, among the Greeks, were clothed
with a sacerdotal character, and who were
called heralds. The bride was usually
placed on car her face was covered with
veil, and on her head was crown. The
crown, as we shall often have occasion to
see, was used in all the ceremonies of this
worship. She was dressed in white. White
was the color of the vestments in all the re-
ligious acts. She was preceded by torch
the nuptial torch. For the whole distance
they sang around her religious hymns.
This hymn was called the hymeneal, and its
Importance was SO great that they gave its
name to the whole ceremony.
The bride dare not go of her own accord
into her new dwelling. Her husband must
take her, and stimulate a seizure by force.
She must cry out, and the women that ac-
company her must pretend to defend her.
| Why this rite? Is it a symbol Of the mod
esty of the bride? This is hardly probable
the moment for shame has not yet come
for what is now to take place is religious
ceremony. Was it not to mark more
strongly that the wife, who was now to
sacrifice to this fire, had herself no right
there, that she did not approach it of her
own free will, and that the master of the
place and of the god introduced her by an
act of his power? However this may be,
after a feigned struggle, the husband raises
her in his arms, and carries her through the
doorway, taking great care, however, that
her feet do not touch the sill.
What precedes is only a preparation, a
prelude to the ceremony. The sacred act
now commences in the house.
3. They approach the hearth {; the wife is
brought into the presence of the domestic
divinity She is sprinkled with the lustral
water. She touches the sacred fire. Prayers
are repeated. Finally, the husband and wife
share between themselves cake or a loaf
This sort of light meal, which commences
and ends with libation and prayer, this
sharing Of nourishment in presence of the
fire, puts the husband and wife in religious
communion with each other, and in COM
munion with the domestic gods.
We can understand, too, that such mar
rage was indissoluble, and that divorce was
almost impossible. The Roman law did, in
deed permit the dissolution of the marriage
by coenptio, or by usus. But the dissolution
of the religious marriage was very difficult.
For that new and sacred ceremony was
necessary, as religion alone could separate
what religion had united. The effect of the
contarreatio could be destroyed only by diE
fa,retio. The husband and wife who wished
to separate appeared for the last time before
the common hearth; priest and witnesses
were present. As on the day of marriage, a
cake of wheaton -four was presented to the
husband and wife. But, instead of sharing
it between them, they rejected it. Then, in
stead of prayers they pronounced formulas
Of strange, severe, spitefuf, frightful
character, sort of malediction, by which
the wife renounced the worship and gods of
the husband. From that moment the reli-
gious bond was broken. The community
of worship having ceased, every other com.
mon interest ceased to exist, and the mar.
riage was dissolved.