L.J. Writes

Ooh, I actually read about that spitting and public insult ritual in Marriage, a History! I had no idea guys still got that even when one of them stepped up. Did the brothers have to vie for her hand (while secretly hoping she'd refuse) to avoid that?

Sadly the records don't mention what happened in the case of multiple widows, since everything I've read on the subject involved only one or just focused on one. I guess they could all go to one brother or be split between brothers depending on their respective abilities to support them, or maybe even based on personal preference, i.e. friends or sisters might ask to stay together. Maybe the family could send back the wives whose marriages weren't politically or economically important, or whose kin were willing to support them.