Elisabeth Storrs explores the complex rules of prostitution in Ancient Rome. Introducing the character of a harlot in my Tales of Ancient Rome Saga led me to discover that the lives of Roman prostitutes were closely controlled by both law and custom. Prostitution was heavily regulated with a division created between those who were accredited and worked in brothels, and those who were not officially recorded and operated on the streets or in taverns and bakeries. As part of the registration process, a woman would provide her correct name and age, her place of birth, and the pseudonym under which she wished to be known.
She also stipulated the price she intended to charge for her services. Her name was then listed on a roll permanently, her reputation irrevocably stained. She forfeited any claim to citizenship which meant she was denied the right to prosecute law suits including suing for rape. Slaves, concubines and prostitutes were excluded based on the premise their pudicitia chastity was inherently compromised and therefore they could not act dishonourably. Instead a prostitute was required to wear a toga which ironically was the garb of a male Roman citizen.
He also had responsibility for city roadworks, grain supplies and collecting taxes. By the time of Caligula, a tax was levied on enrolled prostitutes consisting of an amount equivalent to the sum received in one day from a single client.
However, at least a registered prostitute could rely on the protection of an official who could be called upon to enforce payment from a client. The origins of the label are debatable but one derivation comes from the story of the noble whore, Acca Laurentia, who was also known by the name Lupa and was associated with the legend of the she wolf that suckled Romulus and Remus. Another explanation was simply that men considered harlots to be as rapacious in character as wolves.
Brothels were sooty, smelly and poorly ventilated places which were officially open from 3 pm to dawn. A whore would sit on a stool in front of her cell with a wooden plaque above the doorway with her name and price etched on one side.
