Capite Velato

capite velato

At the traditional public rituals of ancient Rome, officiants prayed, sacrificed, offered libations, and practiced augurycapite velato, "with the head covered" by a fold of the toga drawn up from the back. This covering of the head is a distinctive feature of Roman rite in contrast with Etruscan practice or ritus graecus, "Greek rite." In Roman art, the covered head is a symbol of pietas and the individual's status as a pontifex, augur or other priest.