
Fortuna Muliebris ("Womanly or Female Fortune") is
an aspect of the Roman Goddess of Luck and Fate Who cared for the well-being
and luck of women, especially married women. It is likely that Fortuna was a
Goddess of Women and Childbirth from earliest times; Her oldest cult-center
at Praeneste was dedicated to Fortuna Primigenia, First-born Fortune, whose
epithet not only referenced Her ancient nature but Her connection with children
and birth, and the site of Her oracle in a small cave connects Her to the Mother
Goddess of the Earth. So though Her epithet of Muliebris may not be Her
oldest one, the idea of Fortuna as concerned with the fates of women is very
ancient. As childbirth is not the safest thing to experience even nowadays,
Fortuna may have been invoked to preserve the health of the mother and new born
baby, and bring a quick, easy and (relatively) painless delivery.
Like most depictions of Fortuna, Fortuna Muliebris was shown
with a rudder and cornucopia, symbolizing Fate who guides, and the abundance
chance may bring. She is usually seated, which represents a wish for the stability
of good fortune. According to the legend, worship of Fortuna Muliebris was instituted
at a time when Rome was under attack in the 5th century BCE by Cnaeus Marcius
Coriolanus, a descendant of Ancus Marcius, an early King. Once a hero of Rome,
he later led an army of Volscians against the city, and refused all the pleadings
of the senators and the priests to stop the attack. Until, that is, the matrons
(married women) of Rome, along with his mother, Veturia, and his wife and their
two young children came to plead with him. They managed to convince him to call
it off, and on the spot where Veturia talked him out of it, he dedicated a temple
to Fortuna Muliebris in honor of the women.
This temple was on the Via Latina, one of the main roads out
of Rome, and located about 4 miles from the city. It was traditionally founded
prior to the mid-4th century BCE on the 6th day of July, which became its festival
day. Her statue there could only be touched by matrons who had been married
once, and was credited with being able to speakwhen consecrated, the statue
was said to have said, "Women of the City, you have dedicated me by the
holy law of Rome".
She could be depicted on coins, especially those of the female
relatives of Emperors, as a prayer for the health and fecundity of the imperial
family.
