Cloacina

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This does not adequately cite its references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. (help, get involved!)
Any unsourced material that has been or is likely to be challenged may be removed at any time. This article has been tagged since June 2006.

In Roman mythology, Cloacina ("sewer" or "purifier" in archaic Latin) was the goddess who presided over the Cloaca Maxima, the system of sewers in Rome. Titus Tatius, who reigned with Romulus, erected a statue to her. She was originally derived from Etruscan mythology, where she was a protector of sexual intercourse in marriage^{[citation needed]}. The Cloacae were sewers begun by Tarquinius Priscus and finished by Tarquinius Superbus. Because a statue of Venus was found in the cloacae, some have speculated that the Romans adapted the Etruscan goddess to a personality of Venus^{[citation needed]}. The small Shrine of Venus Cloacina was situated before the Basilica Aemilia on the Roman Forum.