 In the most solemn form of marriage, "confarreatio", the bride and groom shared a cake made of far, the ancient wheat-type particularly associated with Ceres.From at least the mid-republican era, an official, joint cult to Ceres and Proserpina reinforced Ceres' connection with Roman ideals of female virtue.The promotion of this cult coincides with the rise of a plebeian nobility, an increased birthrate among plebeian commoners, and a fall in the birthrate among patrician families.