In Roman law. Dowry; a wife’s marriage portion; all that property which onmarriage is transferred by the wife herself or by another to the husband with a view ofdiminishing the burden which the marriage will entail upon him. It is of three kinds.Profcctitia don is that which is derived from the property of the wife’s father or paternalgrandfather. That dos is termed adventitia which is not profcctitia in respect to itssource, whether It is given by the wife from her own estate or by the wife’s mother or athird person. It is termed rcccptitia do* when accompanied by a stipulation for itsreclamation by the constitutor on the termination of the marriage. See Mackeld. Bom.Law,