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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §23.2.47.pr

Marriage of a Disgraced Senatorial Daughter to a Freedman

Passage 3353 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

This section rules that a daughter of a senator who has lost her dignity through prostitution, stage performances, or a public conviction can marry a freedman with impunity, as she is no longer entitled to the class's honor.

[PAULUS libro secundo ad legem Iuliam et Papiam. ] §23.2.47.prSenatoris filia, quae corpore quaestum uel artem ludicram fecerit aut iudicio publico damnata fuerit, impune libertino nubit: nec enim honos ei seruatur, quae se in tantum foedus deduxit.
[PAULUS, in his second book on the Lex Iulia et Papia.] A daughter of a senator, who has made a gain with her body, or has practiced a theatrical art, or has been condemned in a public trial, marries a freedman with impunity; for honor is not preserved for her who has brought herself into such disgrace.

Notes

  1. §23.2.47.prcorpore quaestum — Literally "making gain with the body," a standard euphemistic idiom in Roman law referring to engaging in prostitution.
  2. §23.2.47.prin tantum foedus — Here, foedus (accusative) does not mean "treaty" or "contract" (from the neuter noun foedus, -eris), but is derived from the adjective foedus (ugly, shameful) and used in the sense of foeditas (disgrace, turpitude), meaning "into such great disgrace."

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §23.2.47.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:23.2.47.pr

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