In ancient Rome, family and procreation were important to social and cultural life. The birth of children was not merely a private concern but also a significant sociopolitical one. Abortion and contraception had specific implications in ancient Rome. These issues reflected and formed the values, conventions, and laws of a complex and stratified civilization.
A critical question
Rigid conventions organized Roman society. The birth of legitimate children was critical to preserving hereditary lines and family esteem. In ancient Rome, abortion and contraception were popular practices, but they were not without controversy.
The Roman law did not expressly forbid abortion. However, social acceptance varied depending on the woman’s status and the grounds for the abortion. Abandonment of children, particularly illegitimate ones, was common, owing mostly to the mother’s and families’ socioeconomic circumstances.
Abortion in ancient Rome
The poet Ovid asks his friend Corina, “Why do you torment your womb by violently introducing sharp weapons and giving the unborn child a terrible poison?” There are no sources in Latin literature that shed insight on the personal motivations of women who have had abortions. Only in Ovid’s case do we know that Corinna aborted for aesthetic reasons.
Voluntary termination of pregnancy was not a crime under Roman law because the unborn child was not considered a person. The Republican government did not condemn abortion. Furthermore, the distinction between preventative and contraception methods was extremely thin.
Penalties for abortion
The first legal consequence for abortion came in 200 AD. It consisted of a lifetime banishment for the woman who chose to terminate her pregnancy against her husband’s wishes. In fact, marriage granted the husband the right to legitimate progeny.
Those who helped the woman to have an abortion faced harsher penalties. They faced forced labor or banishment if the woman passed away during the procedure. However, the severity of the punishment did not have the expected impact, and abortion continued to occur.
Abortion Methods
Abortion became a common practice even during the Imperial Period. The most popular procedures involved consuming purges, emetics, or other liquids. But doctors also performed actual surgical procedures using metal probes. Alternatively, the women attempted to abort by engaging in violent motions, raising large weights, conducting douches, or using local applications.
Many women received assistance from persons who specialized in this technique or provided them with the means to proceed. These persons were not always swindlers. In truth, no doctor in ancient Rome strictly followed the Hippocratic Oath, which meant a restriction on delivering abortive cures.
Doctors’ position
Abortion in ancient Rome was a complicated issue. While some philosophers and doctors criticized it, others saw abortion as a necessary option in some situations. In fact, often the mother’s health, financial situation, social status, and the illegality of the pregnancy did not allow her to give birth to the child.
Contraceptive practices in ancient Rome
In ancient Rome, the lines between abortion and contraception were extremely unclear. Abortion was frequently an emergency contraceptive method. But what were the actual contraceptive practices in ancient Rome? There was no awareness of the differences between the various contraceptive methods. Furthermore, there was no distinction between abortion and abandonment of newborns. In truth, this unawareness stemmed from a lack of understanding of the physiological mechanism of conception.
Preventing pregnancy.
The fact that there are no terms in Latin to denote conception and contraception exemplifies this scenario. Oral language only used the expression “ne concipiat,” meaning “so that I do not become pregnant.”
The historical sources rarely discuss contraception and only make reference to the more privileged classes. As a result, abortion appears to have been more common than other techniques of preventing conception. In fact, ancient medical literature includes significantly more texts about abortion than prevention.
The history of abortion and contraception in ancient Rome reached a turning point in the second century.
Contraceptive methods became more widely available in the second century AD, as the Romans’ standard of living improved. However, contraceptive methods remained an issue that only women had to cope with. To prevent pregnancy, people put cedar resin, vinegar, salt water, and olive oil in the vagina or penis. But women also used vaginal douches to remove sperm from the vagina.
More advanced procedures involved putting pieces of wool soaked in olive oil, honey, wine, or resin into the vagina. Many others chose a wholly ineffective method: wearing magical amulets during sex. They avoided sexual activity during the fertile days of the menstrual cycle. However, this strategy was ineffective due to a lack of exact information about cycle phases and ovulation timing. Doctors believed that the most fertile days occurred shortly following menstruation. Coitus interruptus was rare, and its first mention in historical sources dates back to the 4th century AD.
Child abandonment is another component of the abortion and contraception story in ancient Rome.
In ancient Rome, infant abandoning was a kind of family planning. Expositio (abandonment) was a common practice in the empire’s eastern provinces, where it was considered a tradition. However, as the empire grew, this practice became more difficult to carry out, even though the law never explicitly prohibited it.
Physical abnormalities in newborns were among the factors that drove individuals to leave them. However, neonatal abandonment occurred when the mother or parents were destitute. It’s no surprise that the number of abandoned infants increased during times of crisis, scarcity, and starvation.
The fate of females and males
Child abandonment primarily affected females because parents had to bear the costs of raising them until marriage. Upon marriage, a dowry was necessary. The refusal of girls to marry was considered a bad omen, a harbinger of impending disasters. They were often led to prostitution in the absence of other forms of support. People placed the abandoned newborns in baskets or basins and left them in highly frequented places. For instance, a column in the Rome market frequently held baskets containing the abandoned newborns. This led to the naming of the column as Lactaria columna, or the milk column. In this way, one tried to ensure a greater chance of salvation, despite the fact that many newborns died from hunger and cold.
And even if they escaped death, the life of orphans almost never announced itself as fortunate. Their fate almost always consisted of slavery for males and in the brothel for females. Those who adopted the foundlings had the legal right to turn them into slaves and force them to work. If the natural parents changed their mind or found the abandoned child and requested their release, they were required to reimburse the adoptive parents for the expenses incurred during the child’s growth. Unlike Roman law, Greek law provided that the return should occur without any reimbursement.
Ancient Rome’s abortive and contraceptive practices curiosities.
Here’s a list of curiosities and anecdotes about abortion and contraception in ancient Rome.
- Widespread Use of Contraception. The ancient Romans had an understanding of birth control methods. They used a variety of natural contraceptives.
- Contraceptive Amulets. Besides herbal remedies, Romans also believed in the power of amulets to prevent pregnancy. These often included symbols or items thought to have magical properties.
- The Silphium Mystery. The plant silphium is one of the most famous contraceptives of ancient Rome, but its properties remained a mystery for a long time. Not only did people highly value it for its contraceptive properties, but also for its use in seasoning and medicine. Romans harvested silphium to extinction due to its high demand.
- Abortion Methods. Ancient Romans carried out abortions using a variety of methods, such as physical activity, dietary regimens intended to “flush out” the fetus, and herbal concoctions. Some texts even mention surgical methods, although these were risky and less common.
- Moral and philosophical views. Philosophers and writers of the time had differing views on abortion and contraception. Some, like Stoics, saw no moral issues with abortion, believing the fetus did not possess a soul until birth. Emerging Christian beliefs influenced others to oppose abortion on moral grounds.
- The Role of Midwives. Women, particularly midwives, played a central role in providing contraception and abortion services. They were knowledgeable in herbal remedies and techniques for terminating pregnancies, acting as key figures in women’s health and reproductive decisions.
These points highlight the complex and multifaceted approaches to reproductive health in ancient Rome, reflecting both the practical concerns of family planning and the evolving moral and legal attitudes of the time.
Abortion and Contraception in Ancient Rome Gallery
