Foster Mother
In one mythological tradition (that of Licinius Macer, et al.), she was the wife of the shepherd Faustulus, and therefore the adoptive mother of Romulus and Remus, whom she is said to have saved after they were thrown into the Tiber on the orders of Amulius. She had twelve sons, and on the death of one of them Romulus took his place, and with the remaining eleven founded the college of the Arval brothers (Fratres Arvales). She is therefore identified with the Dea Dia of that collegium. The flamen Quirinalis acted in the role of Romulus (deified as Quirinus) to perform funerary rites for his foster mother.
Read more about this topic: Acca Larentia
Famous quotes containing the words foster and/or mother:
“Sadly I roam,
Still longing for de old plantation,
And for de old folks at home.”
—Stephen Collins Foster (1826–1884)
“There was no need for a feminist philosophy. My mother never stopped to think that she couldn’t do something.... You didn’t have to change the rules. Just be a strong and skilled individual, work hard, do your homework, and you can do it.”
—Katherine Berman Mariano (b. 1957)