The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-03-17
GIRLS OF ANCIENT ROME.
Their Life as Compared With That of
the New Young Women of To-Day.

to oneself Portia, the wife of Brutus in
short dresses and handling and dressing q
primitive doll. And yet we are assured by
Professor Peck that the ancient girls that
seem to have grown old long ages before
our civilization began were at one period
OF their lives very much like the ''new
women" of to-day. There were many an
xious parents in Rome when Julius Caesar
was swimming the Tiber with Cassius ION
raw and gusty day" who were commun-
ing among themselves and seriously con-
sidering the momentous question of ''what
will we do with our girls?"
Women's rights were not understood, or,
II understood, were but little needed in
| these ''brave days of Old" In fact, the
troubles of the little beings who had the
| misfortune to be born females began at a
very early age. Shortly after their en-
trance into the world they were laid down
on the ground before their honorable papa
for consideration. If he ordered them to
be raised, raised they were in a double
sense-then and there from their low es-
tate on the cold, cold ground. and also
| morally and educationally raised. The
boy baby was subjected to similar low
treatment at his birth. If the father was
silent and passed away from the presence
OF the baby without making sign it was
understood that he should never again be
called to look upon the face of the unwel-
come little stranger. In this early stage of
being the prospects of the modern baby
have improved very largely.
1t is needless to pursue the life of the
little one, who, if she belonged to good
family, had a name given to her eight
days after her birth. AS time went on she
passed through the ordinary infant mala-
dies, If not without suffering it may be
presumed that at least she made little
1a<t.,p LIE L -
cry. They are wrapped up in cocoon-like
bands and are bandaged more like num-
mics than live babies. This is the rule of
to-day and for centuries past so far as Rem
aissance and even pre-Renaissance art show
forth. But in the time of the Roman en-
pire the same custom of bandaging babies
was in use, as may be seen in the bas-reliefs
on the front of Roman sarcophagi dating
from that period.
When the young girl reached the age of
13 years she was deemed fit for mar
rlage. She was engaged at any age pre-
vlously, even as early as in her first year.
Even, as in France to-day, the rule was
that the parents should select the husband
for her, but she was not obliged to submit
Dllndly to this choice. The law allowed
her the right to refuse the party that her
parents or guardians deemed eligible. The
engagement ring was simple hoop OF
iron, as full of loving symbolism as the
dalntiest jewel-adorned ring of to-day.
And this ring was worn until marriage
rendered it superhuous, and then the
highly artistic and richly chased gold
hoops, such as fill so many cases in the
jewel-room of the Naples Museum, were
worn with all grace and honor.
While the girl of that ancient period was
still capable of being delighted with toys
and games, cunning artists supplied all
that she could desire in this line Com
mendatore Lanciani has told us the touch
ing tale of the revelation made by the con-
tents of marble sarcophagus found few
years ago, and though Professor Peck re-
ferred at length to the testimony furnished
by the sarcophagus OF the modes and man
ners OF the young ladies OF ancient Rome,
he forgot or neglected to mention Signor
Lanciani's connection with and report of
this discovery. The sarcophagus contained
the skeleton of a young girl, whose name
was Crepereia Tryphaena. When the
marble coffin, or sarcophagus, was
opened, there was seen number of
objects belonging to the deceased, which
had been buried with her. Among these
was an exquisite little doll, carved of oak,
which had grown hard in the water that
filed the sarcophagus. On each side of
the skull were gold earrings, with pearl
drops. A gold necklace with thirty-seven
pendants of green jasper was found among
the bones of the neck. Four rings of solid
gold were found near the bones of the left
hand One of these was an engagement
ring, and two hands clasped together,
carved in the red jasper stone set in it;
indicated that fact The name of the
lover, Philetus, was engraved in the stone
set in another, while the third and fourth
were plain bands of gold. A wreath of
myrtle, fastened with silver clasp on the
forehead, had been placed upon the head
of the dead Crepereia. Fragments of cloth
found in the sediment at the bottom of
the sarcophagus indicated that this girl
had been wrapped in a fine linen shroud.
1t is Lanciani, the director of the exca-
vations where this was found, who has also
furnished the explanation and lnterpreta-
ton of the contents of this tomb, and
which throw such light on Professor Peck's
subject of 'Girlhood in Ancient Rome"
1t is nearly 1900 years since the feet of this
young girl trod the streets of Rome-the
style of letter in which her name is written
indicates that period, and that same name
reveals that she was not noble by birth, but
the daughter of freedman, former SER
want of the noble family of the Creperei
The myrtle wreath on her head tells that
she was on the eve of marriage when death
came. The doll-which is a representation
of a woman, not of a baby, and is iointed-
is one of the finest specimens of that kind
yet found, and is foot in height. "Dolls
| and playthings," concludes Lanciani,
| s'are not peculiar to children's tombs 1t
was customary for young ladies to offer
| their dolls to Venus or Diana on their we'd
ding-day. But this was not the end re-
served for Crepereia's doll. She was
doomed to share the sad fate of her young
mistress and to be placed with her corpse
before the marriage ceremony could be
performed" This, truly, is very pa
thetie side of the story of girl life in the
| Rome of the past.
| The domestic occupations included that
which has now almost passed away-the
| spinning and weaving of cloth. Even in
the highest families the women and daugh-
| tiers were occupied in this task, and the
Emperor Augustus, when appearing before
the Senators, was always arrayed in robes
woven in his own household by his wife,
daughter and other female relatives. 1t
was, the highest tribute to womans
worth and one selected for special mention
on her tombstone besides that of staying
at home, that she spun wool and kept the
house.-Baltimore Sun.
Secretary Gresham has accepted an in
vitation from the Grant Birthday Associa-