The Mythology Book

102

A DESIRE SEIZED

ROMULUS AND

REMUS TO

BUILD A CITY

THE FOUNDING OF ROME

T

he myth of the brothers

Romulus and Remus was

not the only description

of the founding of Rome, but it

became the widely accepted story.

Early accounts claimed that the

twins were the sons of the Trojan

hero Aeneas, but most versions

set the story 15 generations later.

Aeneas’s son, Ascanius,

founded the ancient city of Alba

Longa about 12 miles (19 km) from

the site that later became Rome.

Centuries later, Alba Longa was

inherited by two brothers, Amulius

and Numitor. Amulius suggested

to his brother that they divide their

inheritance in two, one taking the

reins of the kingdom and the other

IN BRIEF

THEME

Birth of a nation

SOURCES

Roman Antiquities, Dionysius

of Halicarnassus, ca. 7 bce;

Fasti (“The Book of Days”),

Ovid, 8 ce; Romulus,

Plutarch, ca. 70 –110 ce.

SETTING

Rome, ca. 753 bce.

KEY FIGURES

Romulus Founder of Rome.

Remus Brother of Romulus.

Amulius King of Alba Longa.

Numitor Deposed brother of

Amulius.

Rhea Silvia Daughter of

Numitor.

Mars God of war.

Faustulus A shepherd.

Larentia Wife of Faustulus.

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103

See also: The Olympian gods 24–31 ■ Aeneas, founder of Rome 96–101 ■

Vesta and Priapus 108-09 The exposure of

Roman children

The element of the myth

of Romulus and Remus that

repels modern readers would

not have shocked Romans.

Infanticide by means of

exposure was commonplace

in ancient societies. The

surprise in Rome’s foundation

myth lies in the survival of the

infants, not their rejection.

Roman fathers had

absolute control over their

children and could simply

choose not to rear them. In

some instances, babies would

be left at recognized sites

where they could be adopted.

But many others were simply

abandoned. Girls, who would

in the event of marriage

require a dowry—a legally

enforced monetary donation to

their husband—were as a

result more often victims of

exposure than boys. The

extent of the practice in

ancient Rome is a matter of

scholarly debate, but it was

made illegal in 374 ce.

the treasures brought by their

ancestor Aeneas from Troy.

Numitor agreed and chose the

kingdom, while Amulius took the

treasure. But with the wealth

brought by that treasure, Amulius

schemed against his brother, and

deposed and imprisoned him.

Birth of the twins

Fearing a challenge from any

descendants of Numitor, Amulius

killed Numitor’s son Aegestus and

forced his daughter Rhea Silvia to

become a Vestal Virgin. According

to most accounts, Mars, the god of

war, seduced her as she lay sleeping

on a riverbank or in a sacred grove,

telling her that she would bear two

sons who would exceed all men in

bravery; other accounts said that

the true father was a masked

Amulius himself. When her twin

children Romulus and Remus were

born, Rhea Silvia was either put to

death for breaking her virginal

vows, or locked up for life. As for the

babies, Amulius ordered a servant

to drown them in the Tiber River.

Instead, the servant cast them

adrift in a basket, and then the river

god brought them safely to the

bank. A female wolf who had just

ANCIENT ROME

The Capitoline Wolf shows Romulus

and Remus suckling from the she-wolf.

The bronze wolf dates to the 11th or

12th century and the twins to the 15th.

Ancestry of Romulus and Remus

whelped found the babies and

suckled them to health. They

were then discovered by Faustulus,

a shepherd (or in some accounts a

swineherd or cowherd) who brought

up the children with the help of his

wife, Larentia. According to some ❯❯

Aeneas, prince of Troy

and hero of the Aeneid

Proca, king of

Alba Longa

Amulius

Mars, the war

god

Numitor

Rhea Silvia

Romulus Remus

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