As to the Greeks and the Romans, they too were very superstitious about childbirth and worshiped goddesses thought to protect expectant mothers.

In ancient Rome, expectant mothers placed themselves under the protection of Juno or Lucina, a moon goddess. Regarding posture in childbirth, De Lalung writes: “Roman women would give birth on a bed, in the semi-reclining position they assumed for eating. . . . For difficult confinements, Soranus of Ephesus [second-century C.E. Greek physician], who practiced in Rome during the reign of Trajan, recommended that the woman should kneel down ‘so as to put the uterus in a better position; stout women should also adopt this posture.’ Like the Greeks, Roman women also gave birth on special, armless chairs.”