The bride was dressed in her home by relatives. She wore a fire-colored veil and simple white smock. Her hair was separated into six tufts and arranged with a spearhead and held by ribbons. A sacrifice of an animal was made. The couple would sign the marriage contract and dowry tablets. The bride would then reach out and take the hand of the groom. The groom asks: “Will you be my mater familias?” Bride: “Will you be my pater familias?” They exchanged rings. The ring was placed on the third finger of the left hand because the Romans believed there was a vein there that went straight to the heart. The audience would shout congratulations. There would be a banquet. At the end of the banquet, the groom would pretend to abduct the bride by wrestling her away from her mother. A procession would take the couple to their home. The bride carried a spindle and a distaff to symbolize her job of spinning and weaving. Along the way, the guests would laugh and tell obscene jokes. The bride would have already decorated the door with strands of wool and smeared it with lard and oil. The groom would carry her over the threshold. They went into the bedroom, the guests continued to party in the other parts of the house.
– maroon 70
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