Vesta in the Aeneid

Antoinette Brazouski (Northern Illinois University)

Although the Hestia, Greek goddess of the hearth, is not mentioned in either the Iliad or the Odyssey, her Roman counterpart, Vesta, is mentioned five times in Vergil’s Aeneid—at 1.292, 2.296, 2.567, 5.744, and 9.259.  These references give added depth to the Roman epic.  They help to emphasize that the Roman nation was thought to be a continuation of the Trojan nation and that at least one of its great leaders was believed to be a descendant of the Trojan royal family.  In addition, the references to Vesta show the importance of the stable, flourishing household (a microcosm of the state) and of peace in Roman culture. Finally, the references to Vesta occur in association with a major theme in the Aeneid, that of pietas overcoming furor and with a major image, fire as symbolic of both destruction and rebirth.