Floralia

Floralia

April 27-May 3

An ancient Roman festival held in honor of Flora, the goddess of flowers and gardens, the Floralia was instituted in 238 b.c.e. It was originally a movable feast whose date depended on the condition of the crops and flowers in any particular year at the end of April and beginning of May.
In 173 b.c.e., after severe storms had proved disastrous for the cornfields and vineyards, the Roman Senate made it an annual festival extending for six days—from April 27, the anniversary of the founding of Flora's temple, through May 3. Traditionally, the first person to lay a wreath or garland on the temple's statue of Flora was destined to have good fortune in the months that followed.
From the beginning, the Floralia was characterized by wild and licentious behavior on the part of the celebrants. The games, dances, and dramatic productions involved in the celebration were usually lewd, and courtesans are said to have performed mimes in the nude. The obscene nature of the festivities was undoubtedly due to their origins in earlier pagan fertility rites designed to promote the earth's fruitfulness. But when the festival was introduced into Rome, it became a good excuse for excessive drinking and carrying on.
The Floralia, which originally featured small statues of Flora that children would decorate with flowers, is believed to have been the precedent for Christian-oriented May Day celebrations, which often included dolls or images of the Virgin Mary.

SOURCES:
AmerBkDays-2000, pp. 247, 333, 334
ClassDict-1984, p. 244
DictRomRel-1996, p. 81
FestRom-1981, p. 110
OxYear-1999, p. 176
SeasFeast-1961, p. 169
(c)

Celebration days: Apr 27 - May 3