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43-400: The wild fig tree was thought to be the male, wild counterpart of the cultivated fig, which was female. In some Roman sources, the wild fig is caprificus , literally "goat fig". The fruit of the fig tree is pendulous, and the tree exudes a milky sap if cut. Rumina and Ruminalis ("of Rumina") were connected by some Romans to rumis or ruma , "teat, breast," but some modern linguists think it

86-527: A she-wolf suckling the twins in their infancy has been a symbol of the city of Rome and the ancient Romans since at least the 3rd century BC. Although the tale takes place before the founding of Rome around 750 BC, the earliest known written account of the myth is from the late 3rd century BC. Possible historical bases for the story, and interpretations of its local variants, are subjects of ongoing debate. Romulus and Remus were born in Alba Longa , one of

129-424: A city named Remuria, five miles from Rome, and outlives his brother Romulus. Roman historians and Roman traditions traced most Roman institutions to Romulus. He was credited with founding Rome's armies, its system of rights and laws, its state religion and government, and the system of patronage that underpinned all social, political and military activity. In reality, such developments would have been spread over

172-483: A company of supporters from the community. When they were young adults, they became involved in a dispute between supporters of Numitor and Amulius. As a result, Remus was taken prisoner and brought to Alba Longa. Both his grandfather and the king suspected his true identity. Romulus, meanwhile, had organized an effort to free his brother and set out with help for the city. During this time, they learned of their past and joined forces with their grandfather to restore him to

215-495: A considerable span of time. Some were much older and others much more recent. To most Romans, the evidence for the veracity of the legend and its central characters seemed clear and concrete, an essential part of Rome's sacred topography. One could visit the Lupercal , where the twins were suckled by the she-wolf, or offer worship to the deified Romulus-Quirinus at the " shepherd's hut ", or see it acted out on stage, or simply read

258-411: A contest of augury . Remus saw 6 auspicious birds, but Romulus saw 12 and claimed to have won divine approval. They disputed the result; Remus insulted Romulus' new city and was killed, either by Romulus or by one of his supporters. Romulus then went on to found the city of Rome, its institutions, government, military, and religious traditions. He reigned for many years as its first king. The origins of

301-511: A fig tree, and never any birds ( Dionysius of Halicarnassus ). The twins and the she-wolf were featured on what might be the earliest silver coins minted in Rome. The Franks Casket , an Anglo-Saxon ivory box (early 7th century AD) shows Romulus and Remus in an unusual setting, two wolves instead of one, a grove instead of one tree or a cave, four kneeling warriors instead of one or two gesticulating shepherds. According to one interpretation, and as

344-585: A spot that had been struck by lightning and was thus regarded as sacred . Pliny's obscure reference may be to the statue of Attus Navius in front of the Curia Hostilia : he stood with his lituus raised in an attitude that connected the Ficus Navia and the accompanying representation of the she-wolf to the Ficus Ruminalis , "as if" the tree had crossed from one space to the other. When

387-481: Is an ongoing debate about how and when the "complete" fable came together. Some elements are attested earlier than others, and the storyline and the tone were variously influenced by the circumstances and tastes of the different sources as well as by contemporary Roman politics and concepts of propriety. Whether the twins' myth was an original part of Roman myth or a later development is the subject of an ongoing debate. Sources often contradict one another. They include

430-571: Is more likely related to the names Roma and Romulus, which may be based on rumon , perhaps a word for "river" or an archaic name for the Tiber. The tree is associated with the legend of Romulus and Remus , and stood where their cradle came to rest on the banks of the Tiber , after their abandonment. It was thought to be located in the Velabrum , a short distance from the Lupercal . The tree offered

473-895: Is not mentioned. Instead, Romulus, upon being told of his true identity and the crimes suffered by him and his family at the hands of the Alban king, simply decided to avenge them. He took his supporters directly to the city and killed Amulius, afterwards restoring his grandfather to the throne. Modern scholarship approaches the various known stories of Romulus and Remus as cumulative elaborations and later interpretations of Roman origin myth . Particular versions and collations were presented by Roman historians as an authoritative, official history trimmed of contradictions and untidy variants, to justify contemporary developments, genealogies and actions in relation to Roman morality . Other narratives appear to represent popular or folkloric tradition; some of these remain inscrutable in purpose and meaning. Wiseman sums

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516-450: The Fasti . The legend as a whole encapsulates Rome's ideas of itself, its origins and moral values. For modern scholarship, it remains one of the most complex and problematic of all foundation myths, particularly in the manner of Remus's death. Ancient historians had no doubt that Romulus gave his name to the city. Most modern historians believe his name a back-formation from the name Rome;

559-462: The Ficus Navia drooped, it was taken as a bad omen for Rome. When it died, it was replaced. In 58 AD, it withered, but then revived and put forth new shoots. In the archaeology of the Comitium, several irregular stone-lined shafts in rows, dating from Republican phases of pavement, may have been apertures to preserve venerable trees during rebuilding programs. Pliny mentions other sacred trees in

602-517: The Palazzo Trinci . Twins in mythology Twins in mythology are in many cultures around the world. In some cultures they are seen as ominous, and in others they are seen as auspicious. Twins in mythology are often cast as two halves of the same whole, sharing a bond deeper than that of ordinary siblings, or seen as fierce rivals . They can be seen as representations of a dualistic worldview. They can represent another aspect of

645-601: The Roman Forum , with two additional figs. One fig was removed with a great deal of ritual fuss because its roots had undermined a statue of Silvanus . A relief on the Plutei of Trajan depicts Marsyas the satyr, whose statue stood in the Comitium, next to a fig tree that is placed on a plinth , as if it too were a sculpture. It is unclear whether this representation means that sacred trees might be replaced with artificial or pictorial ones. The apertures were paved over in

688-468: The curule aediles Gnaeus and Quintus Ogulnius placed images of Romulus and Remus as babies suckling under her teats. It may be this sculpture group that is represented on coins. The Augustan historian Livy says that the tree still stood in his day, but his younger contemporary Ovid observes only vestigia , "traces," perhaps the stump. A textually problematic passage in Pliny seems to suggest that

731-525: The feral children of ancient mythography . Current scholarship offers little evidence to support any particular version of the Roman foundation myth, including a historical Romulus or Remus. Starting with Fabius Pictor, the written accounts must have reflected the commonly-held history of the city to some degree. The archaeologist Andrea Carandini is one of very few modern scholars who accept Romulus and Remus as historical figures, and dates an ancient wall on

774-517: The runic inscription ("far from home") indicates, the twins are cited here as the Dioscuri , helpers at voyages such as Castor and Polydeuces . Their descent from the Roman god of war predestines them as helpers on the way to war. The carver transferred them into the Germanic holy grove and has Odin 's second wolf join them. Thus the picture served—along with five other ones—to influence " wyrd ",

817-609: The Dioscuri twin brothers. Their mother is Leda, a being who was seduced by Zeus who had taken the form of a swan. Even though the brothers are twins, they have two different fathers . This phenomenon is a very common interpretation of twin births across different mythological cultures. Castor's father is Tyndareus, the king of Sparta (hence the mortal form). Pollux is the son of Zeus (demigod). This brothers were said to be born from an egg along with either sister Helen and Clytemnestra. This etymologically explains why their constellation,

860-567: The Dioskouroi or Gemini, is only seen during one half of the year, as the twins split their time between the underworld and Mount Olympus. In an aboriginal tale, the same constellation represents the twin lizards who created the plants and animals and saved women from evil spirits. Another example of this strong bond shared between twins is the Ibeji twins from African mythology. Ibeji twins are viewed as one soul shared between two bodies. If one of

903-457: The augury and fratricide. Plutarch relates the legend in chapters 2–10 of the Life of Romulus . He dedicates the most attention, nearly half the entire account, to conflict with Amulius. Fasti , the epic Latin poem by Ovid from the early 1st century AD, contains a complete account of the twins' tale. Notably, it relates a tale wherein the ghost of Remus appears to Faustulus and his wife, whom

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946-467: The background of their birth in Alba, he dedicates a total of 9 chapters to the tale (79–87). Most of that is spent discussing the conflict with Amulius. He goes on to discuss the various accounts of the city's founding by others, and the lineage and parentage of the twins for another 8 chapters until arriving at the tale of their abandonment by the Tiber. He spends the better part of the chapter 79 discussing

989-493: The bank of the river Tiber to die. They were saved by the god Tiberinus , Father of the River, and survived with the care of others at the site of future Rome. In the best-known episode, the twins were suckled by a she-wolf in a cave now known as the Lupercal . Eventually, they were adopted by Faustulus , a shepherd. They grew up tending flocks, unaware of their true identities. Over time, they became natural leaders and attracted

1032-465: The basis for Remus's name and role remain subjects of ancient and modern speculation. The myth was fully developed into something like an "official", chronological version in the Late Republican and early Imperial era; Roman historians dated the city's foundation to between 758 and 728 BC, and Plutarch reckoned the twins' birth year as 771 BC. A tradition that gave Romulus a distant ancestor in

1075-481: The different elements in Rome's foundation myth are a subject of ongoing debate. They may have come from the Romans' own Italic origins, or from Hellenic influences that were included later. Definitively identifying those original elements has so far eluded classicists . Roman historians dated the founding of Rome around 753 BC, but the earliest known written account of the myth is from the late 3rd century BC. There

1118-422: The fortune and fate of a warrior king. The myth has been an inspiration to artists throughout the ages. Particular focus has been paid to the rape of Ilia by Mars and the suckling of the twins by the she-wolf. In the late 16th century, the wealthy Magnani family from Bologna commissioned a series of artworks based on the Roman foundation myth. The artists contributing works included a sculpture of Hercules with

1161-405: The histories of Livy, Plutarch, Dionysius of Halicarnassus, and Tacitus as well as the work of Virgil and Ovid. Quintus Fabius Pictor 's work became authoritative to the early books of Livy's History of Rome , Dionysius of Halicarnassus 's Roman Antiquities , and Plutarch 's Life of Romulus . These three works have been among the most widely read versions of the myth. In all three works,

1204-542: The infant twins by Gabriele Fiorini, featuring the patron's own face. The most important works were an elaborate series of frescoes collectively known as Histories of the Foundation of Rome by the Brothers Carracci: Ludovico , Annibale , and Agostino Carracci . The Loggia di Romolo e Remo is an unfinished, 15th century fresco by Gentile da Fabriano depicting episodes from the legend in

1247-502: The many ancient Latin cities near the Seven hills of Rome . Their mother Rhea Silvia , also known as Ilia, was a Vestal Virgin and the daughter of former king Numitor , who had been displaced by his brother Amulius . In some sources, Rhea Silvia conceived them when the god Mars visited her in a sacred grove dedicated to him. Seeing them as a possible threat to his rule, King Amulius ordered them to be killed and they were abandoned on

1290-528: The north slope of the Palatine Hill to the mid-8th century BC and names it the Murus Romuli . Ancient pictures of the Roman twins usually follow certain symbolic traditions, depending on the legend they follow: they either show a shepherd, the she-wolf, the twins under a fig tree, and one or two birds ( Livy , Plutarch ); or they depict two shepherds, the she-wolf, the twins in a cave, seldom

1333-401: The poet calls "Acca". In the story, Remus appears to them while in bed and expresses his anger at Celer for killing him and his own, as well as Romulus' unquestioned fraternal love. Roman History by Cassius Dio survives in fragments from various commentaries. They contain a more-or-less complete account. In them, he mentions an oracle that had predicted Amulius' death by a son of Numitor as

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1376-409: The reason the Alban king expelled the boys. There is also a mention of "another Romulus and Remus" and another Rome having been founded long before on the same site. This work contains a variety of versions of the story. In one, there is a reference to a woodpecker bringing the boys food during the time they were abandoned in the wild. In one account of the conflict with Amulius, the capture of Remus

1419-452: The same subjects as interested outsiders, and include founder-traditions not mentioned by Livy, untraceable to a common source and probably specific to particular regions, social classes or oral traditions. A Roman text of the late Imperial era, Origo gentis Romanae (The origin of the Roman people) is dedicated to the many "more or less bizarre", often contradictory variants of Rome's foundation myth, including versions in which Remus founds

1462-422: The self, a doppelgänger , or a shadow . Twins are often depicted with special powers. This applies to both mortal and immortal sets of twins, and often is related to power over the weather. Twins in mythology also often share deep bonds. In Greek mythology, Castor and Pollux share a bond so strong that when mortal Castor dies, Pollux gives up half of his immortality to be with his brother. Castor and Pollux are

1505-410: The semi-divine Trojan prince Aeneas was further embellished, and Romulus was made the direct ancestor of Rome's first Imperial dynasty . Possible historical bases for the broad mythological narrative remain unclear and disputed. The image of the she-wolf suckling the divinely fathered twins became an iconic representation of the city and its founding legend, making Romulus and Remus pre-eminent among

1548-427: The survival in the wild. Then the end of 79 through 84 on the account of their struggle with Amulius. 84 with the non-fantastical account of their survival 294. Finally, 295 is the augury, 85–86, 87–88, the fratricide. Livy discusses the myth in chapters 4, 5, and 6 of his work's first book. p. 7 parentage 4 p. 8 survival. p. 8 the youth. 5 9–10 the struggle with Amulius. 6 p. 11 (the beginning only)

1591-623: The tales of the lupercal and the fratricide are overshadowed by that of the twins' lineage and connections to Aeneas and the deposing of Amulius. The latter receives the most attention in the accounts. Plutarch dedicates nearly half of his account to the overthrow of their uncle. Dionysius cites, among others, the histories of Pictor , Lucius Calpurnius Piso , Cato the Elder , Lucius Cincius Alimentus . The first book of Dionysius' twenty-volume history of Rome does not mention Remus until page 235 (chapter 71). After spending another 8 chapters discussing

1634-591: The throne. Amulius was killed and Numitor was reinstated as king of Alba. The twins set out to build a city of their own. After arriving back in the area of the seven hills, they disagreed about the hill upon which to build. Romulus preferred the Palatine Hill , above the Lupercal; Remus preferred the Aventine Hill . When they could not resolve the dispute, they agreed to seek the gods' approval through

1677-551: The time of Augustus, an event that may explain Ovid's vestigia . Romulus and Remus This is an accepted version of this page In Roman mythology , Romulus and Remus ( Latin: [ˈroːmʊlʊs] , [ˈrɛmʊs] ) are twin brothers whose story tells of the events that led to the founding of the city of Rome and the Roman Kingdom by Romulus, following his fratricide of Remus. The image of

1720-554: The tree was miraculously transplanted by the augur Attus Navius to the Comitium . This fig tree, however, was the Ficus Navia , so called for the augur. Tacitus refers to the Ficus Navia as the Arbor Ruminalis , an identification that suggests it had replaced the original Ficus Ruminalis , either symbolically after the older tree's demise, or literally, having been cultivated as an offshoot. The Ficus Navia grew from

1763-423: The twins dies, the parents then create a doll that portrays the body of the deceased child, so the soul of the deceased can remain intact for the living twin. Without the creation of the doll, the living twin is almost destined for death because it is believed to be missing half of its soul. Twins in mythology are often associated with healing. They are also often gifted with the ability of divination or insight into

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1806-401: The twins shade and shelter in their suckling by a she-wolf , just outside the nearby Lupercal cave, until their discovery and fostering by the shepherd Faustulus and his wife Acca Larentia . Remus was eventually killed by Romulus, who went on to found Rome on the Palatine Hill , above the cave. A statue of the she-wolf was supposed to have stood next to the Ficus Ruminalis . In 296 BC,

1849-431: The whole as the mythography of an unusually problematic foundation and early history. The three canonical accounts of Livy, Dionysius, and Plutarch provide the broad literary basis for studies of Rome's founding mythography. They have much in common, but each is selective to its purpose. Livy's is a dignified handbook, justifying the purpose and morality of Roman traditions of his own day. Dionysius and Plutarch approach

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