Laetitia, deriving from the root word ''laeta'', meaning "happy", "glad", "lucky", "successful", "prosperous", "luxurious", "lush", or "abounding", was a minor

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

goddess of

gaiety Gaiety or Gayety may refer to: * Gaiety (mood), the state of being happy * Gaiety Theatre (disambiguation) * ''USS Gayety (AM-239'', former name of the ship ''BRP Magat Salamat (PS-20)'' See also *Gaiety Girls Gaiety Girls were the chorus girl ...

. Her name was used to mean happiness with prosperity and abundance. She is usually shown with greenery to depict the abundance of seasonal decorations that many sites would include. Wreaths of flowers or leaves are commonly worn at festivals or holy rituals, similarly Laetitia would be shown wearing a

garland A garland is a decorative braid, knot or wreath of flowers, leaves, or other material. Garlands can be worn on the head or around the neck, hung on an inanimate object, or laid in a place of cultural or religious importance. Etymology From the ...

to mean celebration. She was sometimes depicted on Roman coinage with an anchor, as a representation of stability, or, like

Fortuna Fortuna ( la, Fortūna, equivalent to the Greek goddess Tyche) is the goddess of fortune and the personification of luck in Roman religion who, largely thanks to the Late Antique author Boethius, remained popular through the Middle Ages until at ...

, a ship's rudder symbolizing her guiding one to good fortune or prosperity. Laetitia, engraved Felicitas Temporum, ''the happiness of the times'', has children playing across the four seasons on different coins, the ''limes'' denarus holds Laetitia at an altar sacrificing near lit candles while the back features a half-moon and seven stars. Coins of the limes denarus are issued by

Elagabalus Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Sextus Varius Avitus Bassianus, 204 – 11/12 March 222), better known by his nickname "Elagabalus" (, ), was Roman emperor from 218 to 222, while he was still a teenager. His short reign was conspicuous for s ...

, this meant they were indicating the divine, at behest of

Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa (Roman province), Africa. As a young man he advanced thro ...

. Saecvli Felicitas, ''the happiness of the age'', happiness followed abundance and the virtue of Roman and Egyptian destiny whole and by necessity included large stores of grain imported from Egypt, with some coins showing Laetitia having an infant

Horus Horus or Heru, Hor, Har in Ancient Egyptian, is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities who served many functions, most notably as god of kingship and the sky. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the P ...

suckling at her breast, it could mean Roman-Egyptian ancient goddess Isis may have been prominent in Rome at the time, further coins reveal children on the throne, and an emperor with a

spear A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...

and orb. The trade in surplus foodstuffs was a sign of wealth, used symbolically with the child

Plutus In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Plutus (; grc-gre, Πλοῦτος, Ploûtos, wealth) is the god and the personification of wealth, and the son of the goddess of agriculture Demeter and the mortal Iasion. Family Plutus is most common ...

, the virtue of abundance is food and prosperity for all of society, food precedes and may follow prosperity. A new lineage is born of abundance, this is a joy depicted on the following coins and the beliefs of Romans where suggested similarly to be joyful of their new heirs. Laetitia Publicae, "the happiness of the times", produced and preceded "the happiness of the age" and it founded a "Established" joy. Roman and Egyptian destiny is made complete and altered to make anew, this is necessary for Established joy. Roman Laetitia publ, or Publius, most likely meaning Publius Vellaeus, the commander of the provincial army in Moesia in otherwise unknown activities of Roman administrators and Moesian army officers in the period in AD21, and Laetita Fvndat, or fundat, now personified by a rudder next a globe, symbolically means trade is now part of the globe, the sea routes which now transport more food, corn. A rudder is also shown behind an altar, as such a divine victory and gain of food through the sea is establishing a joy that is public, a public joy is a religious thanksgiving. Also named Laetitia Fundata, after 3rd century CE under Augustus, Laetitia Fundata means "Established" or "Well-Founded" Joy; these coins usually show Her with a ship's rudder, often resting on a globe. Again, these depictions hammer home the idea that the foundation of the Empire's happiness was built on its ability to

dominate The Dominate, also known as the late Roman Empire, is the name sometimes given to the "despotic" later phase of imperial government in the ancient Roman Empire. It followed the earlier period known as the "Principate". Until the empire was reunit ...

and direct the course of events, though they may also, more practically, make reference to the Empire's dependence on imported grain to keep its people fed. Goddess

Ceres Ceres most commonly refers to: * Ceres (dwarf planet), the largest asteroid * Ceres (mythology), the Roman goddess of agriculture Ceres may also refer to: Places Brazil * Ceres, Goiás, Brazil * Ceres Microregion, in north-central Goiás ...

is shown with her daughter

Proserpina Proserpina ( , ) or Proserpine ( ) is an ancient Roman goddess whose iconography, functions and myths are virtually identical to those of Greek Persephone. Proserpina replaced or was combined with the ancient Roman fertility goddess Libera, whos ...

(perhaps better known by their Greek equivalents

Demeter In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Demeter (; Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over crops, grains, food, and the fertility of the earth. Although s ...

and Kore or

Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld after ...

), under Emperor Pius rule instead of Laetitia. She is also depicted with ears of wheat in Her right hand; but in Her left She holds the hasta pura, literally a "blameless spear", a prized military award for saving the life of a soldier. A symbol of divine power the hasta pura was also carried by the Goddesses

Pax Pax or PAX may refer to: Peace * Peace (Latin: ''pax'') ** Pax (goddess), the Roman goddess of peace ** Pax, a truce term * Pax (liturgy), a salutation in Catholic and Lutheran religious services * Pax (liturgical object), an object formerly ki ...

("Peace") and Providentia ("Providence" or "Foresight"), indicates righteous victory, or the peace and prosperity that can flourish when a war is won. Laetitia, or more accurately, a "groundless" version of Her is mentioned by Ovid in his Metamorphoses as being a friend of the Rumor-Goddess Fama; in this case, Laetitia represents the unfounded joy gossip can quickly bring and just as quickly dash.

References

{{Roman religion Roman goddesses Personifications in Roman mythology