What little we have on Gortyn tells us only about who had the power to decide the life and death of a newborn. The decision rested with the father. If the parents were divorced, the child’s mother must present it to the father in the presence of three witnesses. If he rejected it, the choice and responsibility rested with her. How common infanticide actually was remains unknown.
In Sparta, we see two different practices. All Spartiate male babies were presented to a council of older men. Any child deemed not strong enough was abandoned at the foot of Mount Tatygetus. Plutarch tells us that mothers tested their new infants for sickliness by bathing them in wine. If the child went into convulsions, it was considered not strong enough and was probably exposed.
In Athens, the decision to raise or expose an infant almost always rested with the father. Male babies were more likely to be raised than female ones, partially due to economic concerns** and partially in an effort to control the population.*** Certainly more effort would have been expended on a male child, no matter his health, than any female child. Many families seem to have only raised one daughter, especially in the Hellenistic period when the rate of female infanticide increased.****
There are some things worth noting about this practice. First, infanticide was generally viewed as a method of family planning and was considered little different from late abortion, the difference being that giving birth was a little safer for the mother’s health.
Second, some scholars have assumed that the exposure of deformed infants was a matter of course as they would not be worth rearing. Scholarly work has shown, however, that the idea that a physically impaired infant would not be worth rearing is entirely modern. Additionally, there is too little evidence to conclude that a deformity would have meant a child would not be raised.
*This not only allowed the family to avoid killing the child directly, but meant that there was some slight chance someone might find it and take it in. This became something of a trope in Greek theater, especially New Comedy.
**Not only did a girl have to be given a dowry, but she was also unlikely to bring wealth or status to the family as a boy might.
***Fewer women means fewer people likely to give birth means fewer people crowded into a city means more resources per person. Or more resources for rich people anyway.
****During this time period it was not uncommon for abandoned baby girls to be sought out and raised as slaves. They usually ended up as prostitutes.
The Law Code of Gortyn - Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Laws Relating to Women, Gortyn - Diotima
Pomeroy, Sarah B. Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves. New York: Schocken, 1995.
Pomeroy, Sarah B. Spartan Women. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
Rose, Martha L. The Staff of Oedipus: Transforming Disability in Ancient Greece. Ann Arbor, MI: University of MIchigan Press, 2003.
Blundell, Sue. Women in Ancient Greece. London: British Museum Press, 1995.
Infanticide - Wikipedia