History of Rome: Romulus and Remus

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Romulus and Remus

As the story goes, Romulus and Remus were twins, abandoned by their mother as babies, and put into a basket which was placed into the Tiber River. The basket landed and the twins were discovered by a female wolf. The wolf nursed the babies until they were found by a shepherd who lived nearby. The shepherd raised the twins as his own, although they were said to be unruly and obnoxious. When Romulus and Remus became adults, they decided to build a city where the wolf had found them. The brothers fought over everything, including where the site should be and what to name it. Eventually, Remus was accidentally killed by his brother, Romulus, who became the sole founder of the new city and he gave his name to it (Daning) Rome, whose founding date is said to be April 2,1 753 BC. (Carandini)

While most people read this as simply a legend to inspire a sense of heroic patriotism, Andrea Carandini took it most literally and, over many years, has found historical evidence that has led to his the conclusion that, drawing from his own excavations and histor...

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