FUNDILIA, PATRONA

The statue of Fundilia was paid for by one of her freedmen. A portrait of him stood next to hers: It is the actor Gaius Fundilius Doctus. Both statues are from the 40s AD. As was quite normal for honorary statues of Roman women, Fundilia's stance and dress follow Greek models. Fundilius is all Roman, wearing the dress of the citizen, the toga.

At Nemi, just south of Rome, the goddess Diana had a sanctuary. Near her temple was a little chapel with portraits of prominent, local devotees. Fundilia was one of them.

We know her name because it is inscribed on the statue's base. She was a 'patrona', the head of a household, and thus had the right to free her slaves.