Feb 15

Lupercalia

An ancient Roman festival during which worshippers gathered on the Palatine Hill in Rome. They sacrificed goats and dogs to the Roman deities Lupercus and Faunus. Luperci (priests of Lupercus) dressed in goatskins and smeared with the sacrificial blood would run about striking the women with thongs of goat skin. This was thought to assure them of fertility and an easy delivery. The name for these thongs februa meant "means of purification" and eventually gave the month of February its name. It is believed that the Lupercalia was a forerunner of modern Valentine's Day customs. Part of the ceremony involved putting girl's names in a box and letting boys draw them out, thus pairing them off until the next Lupercalia.