The month of April was thought to be particularly sacred to Venus, the goddess of love and beauty. The Veneralia (April 1) was the festival of Venus Verticordia, the goddess who changes the human heart. The worship of the goddess Fortuna Virilis was also part of this festival. (In general, the wealthier classes honored Venus and the less so honored Fortuna Virilis, but this was by no means a hard and fast rule.)

In Rome, women bathed in the public baths wearing wreaths of myrtle on their heads. They poured a libation and drank the potion that Venus drank on her wedding night: pounded poppy with milk and honey. The jewelry was removed from the statue of Fortuna Virilis and ritually washed, and then flowers and incense were offered to her. It was generally a day for women to seek divine help in their relations with men.