Swaddled infant votive



Swaddled baby votives are figures of babies offered as an entreaty to a god or goddess, for healthy pregnancy and childbirth. They have been recovered from ancient Italian Roman temple sanctuary sites.

The Roman child
In ancient Rome, family was important to create new citizens and widen political dimensions. The newborn Roman these votives represent had faced an uphill battle to make it through to this milestone. It is common in Roman antiquity for women to experience high infertility and mortality (1 in 50). Women married young, and it was expected of them that they would procreate successfully early into the marriage and often. Many things could go wrong and affected her fertility in this endeavor and her ability to survive the pregnancy.

Newborns as well experienced a high mortality rate (up to 35%) for a myriad of reasons. In fact, there was the possibility that the pater familias (legal head of the family) legally might deem them unworthy of life. It is common in circumstances of high infant mortality to refrain from bonding with or naming an infant. When the Roman child was 8 (for female) or 9 (for males) days old there was a Dies Lustricus (day of purification) ceremony whereupon they were officially named and entered society as a full-fledged Roman citizen. Within 30 days the legitimate citizen child had to be registered in a declaration (professio) before a magistrate. The register of births displayed temporarily in public and the permanent copy in the official state archives are further indications that an infant had a social and public persona.

After birth, a period of 40 days is described as critical and marked by various events and rights in the Roman world. The newborn baby gradually adjusted to its surroundings. After the forty day milestone was reached, the baby was released from the swaddling bands in which it had been wrapped since birth. As such, it is thought that Roman swaddled baby votives must represent infants during the first 40 days of life. This would be when the votive would be offered. The unwrapping of the swaddling clothes represented a stronger, healthier child.

Votives
Votives are gifts to gods by worshippers. In this instance they are given to gods in gratitude for the fulfillment of the vow to the god for divine favor. Unlike anatomical votives which are made to resemble a body part, the swaddled baby votive is assumed to represent the child's body in its entirety. For example, at the temple of Mater Matuta in Satricum, archaeologists discovered votive models of wombs, figurines of women with children, and terracotta swaddled infants.

Due to high infant mortality rates and complications with infertility, either parent could offer vows to deities in the hopes for successful pregnancies and the survival of the child. Sometimes described as an Ex voto, their dedication and deposition can be understood to be thank offerings for the fulfillment of oaths to a deity for health expressing the reciprocal relationship between gods and humans. This religious offering dates to the 5th century BCE, heightened during the third century, before it declined significantly during the second century BCE.

Stylization
The swaddled baby votives of ancient Italy were predominantly fabricated from terracotta but have been recorded also in metal (bronze, gold, silver) and tufa. They can range in size from fitting in the palm of your hand to life-sized. These swaddled human representations were seemingly modeled to lay down, lean, or hang as they are created flat on the back.

The votives featured a healthy cherubic face for the most part and the styling of the swaddle banding is geometrical. The way the simulated child is wrapped varies in detail. Some, evidentially male, feature bulla (amulets), some have exposed toes, and some wear hats. These features reveal details about social status, locale, time period or even the choices of the individual craftsman. There is a distinct lack of epigraphic evidence for decisive definition.

Location
Swaddled baby votives, have been found in regions including but not exclusively Etruria, Latium, Campania. It is problematic to determine details about their placement within the temple as they are, with few exceptions, discovered in sanctuary pits. The votive was placed and left for a period of time within the temple, the ultimately when space was needed the accumulating votives would be removed and relocated to their ultimate destination on the sanctuary grounds.