Feast day of Meditrinalia, Roman Empire

Today was the Meditrinalia (from Latin mederi, 'to heal'). Varro derives the name of the festival from the healing power of the new wine, but Festus says there was a goddess named Meditrina ('healer'), goddess of health, longevity and wine. It was the day on which people sampled old and new wine. It is, in fact, a harvest festival.

Meditrina roughly equated with the Greek goddess Jaso, but differed from Medetrina's sister Hygieia (they, and Panacea, were daughters of Asclepius and Salus) in that while the Greek goddess preserved good health, Meditrina's role was to restore it ...

Categories: ancient+rome, deities, calendar+customs, festivals