Plutarch mentions a story about a senator whose wife questioned him about what the Senate was debating on. To silence his curious wife, the senator replied that the congregation was considering whether the appearance of a lark in the sky with a golden helmet and a spear was a good or bad omen. By the way, he asked his wife to keep a secret when he left the house.
When he reached the Forum, he was unexpectedly accosted by a passer-by, asking if he had seen a flying lark in a golden helmet, with a spear.
