Roman festival of Lupercalia.

[randomness]

From http://londonpicaresque.blogspot.com/2005/02/palatine-hill.html (from my friend Katherine's blog, syndicated as london_kate:

"Way back when, 15 February was celebrated in honor of either Lupercus, Rumina, Inuus or Faunus. Never the sort to let spiritual ambiguities stand in the way of a good streaking festival, the Romans involved two young noblemen being stripped naked on the Palatine Hill, rubbed down with scented oils, and sent running through the streets of Rome with sticks and goatskin lashes, smacking whomever they came across. And if one of their lash-ees happened to be a nubile young lady? It was supposed to INCREASE HER FERTILITY."

Comments

Re: Not to be pedantic but....

[nafe.livejournal.com]

So, what? Are you saying Jews don't look good naked?

Re: Not to be pedantic but....

[orichalcum.livejournal.com]

No...but it was used as a device of public humiliation and mockery, and they'd deliberately pick the oldest and fattest Jewish men and throw things at them as they raced. I'm saying it's really icky to make old fat Jews run naked while insulting them, that's all. Very different if it was a race for _young_ Jewish men...

--Orichalcum, still traumatized by the naked Supreme Court page in America: The Book