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Posted: Sun Sep 14, 2025 11:54 am
“The festival of Fortis Fortunae was connected with agriculture and was celebrated on June 24. Fortuna of the cattle market had a different character; her close association and proximity with Mater Matuta (Latin Mater Matuta) suggest that, like Matuta, she was a goddess-patroness of women; this is also indicated by her identification with Pudicitia (Latin Pudicitia), and by the custom of brides offering to this Fortuna Virginalis their maiden garments. To the same goddess was dedicated another temple on the Latin Road, founded, according to tradition, by Coriolanus, where the goddess was venerated under the name of Fortuna Muliebris. A similar relation to women is seen in the cult of Fortuna Virilis, to whom women of the lower classes prayed on April 1 in men’s baths; her festival coincided with that of Venus. Thus, alongside being the goddess- patroness of purity and chastity, she also patronized the opposite qualities of female nature.
In view of this deity’s capacity for differentiation, along with the predominance of purely material interests in society, Fortuna became the most popular goddess of the Roman Pantheon and was venerated under thousands of names and epithets. Characteristic in this regard are the words of Pliny the Elder: “Throughout the whole world, everywhere at every hour of the day, the voices of all invoke and name only Fortuna; her alone they blame, bring to account, think of, praise, accuse. With curses they revere her changeability; many consider her blind, wandering, inconstant, unfaithful, ever-changing, the protectress of the unworthy. To her account are credited both debit and credit, and in the account books of mortals she alone occupies both pages.”
Thousands of altars and chapels were dedicated to her throughout the Roman Empire; her image appeared in household shrines, on coins, and even more often on objects of industry and domestic use; she prevailed, together with Mercury — likewise a god of material profit and luck — on carved gems, on lead tokens of the most varied purposes, on lamps, moneyboxes, vessels of daily use, and so on.
Fortuna is usually depicted as a robed woman, leaning with one hand on a wheel and holding a cornucopia in the other. Sometimes she is shown standing on a sphere or resting her main attribute — the wheel — upon it.”
In view of this deity’s capacity for differentiation, along with the predominance of purely material interests in society, Fortuna became the most popular goddess of the Roman Pantheon and was venerated under thousands of names and epithets. Characteristic in this regard are the words of Pliny the Elder: “Throughout the whole world, everywhere at every hour of the day, the voices of all invoke and name only Fortuna; her alone they blame, bring to account, think of, praise, accuse. With curses they revere her changeability; many consider her blind, wandering, inconstant, unfaithful, ever-changing, the protectress of the unworthy. To her account are credited both debit and credit, and in the account books of mortals she alone occupies both pages.”
Thousands of altars and chapels were dedicated to her throughout the Roman Empire; her image appeared in household shrines, on coins, and even more often on objects of industry and domestic use; she prevailed, together with Mercury — likewise a god of material profit and luck — on carved gems, on lead tokens of the most varied purposes, on lamps, moneyboxes, vessels of daily use, and so on.
Fortuna is usually depicted as a robed woman, leaning with one hand on a wheel and holding a cornucopia in the other. Sometimes she is shown standing on a sphere or resting her main attribute — the wheel — upon it.”