When Was Rome Really Founded?

Depiction of Romulus and Remus astatine the Cathedral of Maria Saal successful Rome. Credit: Wikimedia Commons, CC-BY-SA 4.0

The 21st of April is the accepted day of the founding of the past metropolis of Rome. According to legend, Rome was founded erstwhile Romulus and Remus started gathering a metropolis connected the Palatine Hill aft being abandoned arsenic infants and raised by a wolf. The accepted day for erstwhile Romulus founded Rome is April 21, 753 BCE. This would marque Rome 2776 years aged today. But is this truly erstwhile Rome was founded?

The archaeology of the metropolis of Rome

In reality, the archaeology of the metropolis of Rome shows that it existed agelong earlier this, astatine slightest successful immoderate sense. There is definite grounds of a colony determination dating backmost to the ninth period BCE. For example, archaeologists person recovered remains of a chromatic partition on with pottery dating to that era.

In fact, determination is adjacent immoderate grounds that the Palatine Hill was the tract of a quality colony arsenic aboriginal arsenic the tenth period BCE.

Therefore, the grounds is wide that Rome existed successful immoderate signifier oregon different since agelong earlier the day of its authoritative founding. What does this mean for the legends? Does this mean that the archaeology contradicts them and proves that they are conscionable fiction? This is what immoderate researchers claim, but the world is much analyzable than that.

What Greek mythology truly says astir the founding of Rome

Rather than suggesting that Romulus was the archetypal idiosyncratic to ever physique a colony connected the Palatine Hill, a assortment of ancient Greek and Roman records marque it wide that determination was a erstwhile colony there.

For instance, Virgil’s Aeneid describes however a Greek king named Evander had founded a city successful that aforesaid location, which helium called Pallantium. Evander was an older modern of Aeneas, a prince of Troy during the Trojan War.

This was not an invention of Virgil, arsenic immoderate radical erroneously believe. This aforesaid contented is supported by Dionysius of Halicarnassus, a Greek historiographer of the archetypal period BCE. It is besides supported by Ateius Philologus, a Roman historiographer of that aforesaid era.

In fact, Ateius adjacent tells america that Evander’s colony was not the earliest either. According to this Roman historian, the archetypal colony connected the Palatine Hill was named Valentia, and past successful the clip of Evander it had its sanction changed to ‘Rome’.

The overmuch earlier historiographer named Antiochus of Syracuse, of the 5th period BCE, supports this inasmuch arsenic helium claimed that determination had been a Rome that existed earlier the Trojan War.

Archaeology and fable connected the earliest Rome

With these facts successful mind, what tin we accidental astir the imaginable correspondence betwixt the legends and the archaeological evidence?

Firstly, we should enactment that determination is grounds that the past Greeks were mistaken successful their calculations of the day of the Trojan War. Greek student Nikos Kokkinos is 1 of the modern historians who has demonstrated this. His probe and that of others places the Trojan War centuries much recently.

Herodotus, for example, places the Trojan War just 2 generations earlier the Spartans colonized Santorini. The archaeological grounds for Spartan beingness connected Santorini starts successful the seventh period BCE and nary earlier. Likewise, King Midas of Greek fable was a modern of that warfare and definitely lived successful the precocious eighth period BCE.

This means that Aeneas would person lived centuries much precocious arsenic well. Based connected this fact, what tin we reason astir the precise earliest colony uncovered by archaeology astatine Rome? These remains are apt traces of the Valentia that Ateius Philology mentioned. At immoderate point, it became the metropolis of Evander. When did that happen?

When Evander founded Rome

The colony that Evander supposedly founded is peculiarly interesting. He was a Greek king, and yet the Greeks did not commencement settling Italy until the eighth period BCE. This supports the aforementioned decision that the Trojan War occurred centuries much precocious than its accepted date.

Archaeology has revealed immoderate important grounds successful this regard. Although the grounds is limited, immoderate scholars person argued that determination whitethorn person been a Greek colony astatine the Palatine Hill successful the eighth period BCE.

In each probability, Evander’s legendary Greek metropolis astir surely has its root successful this evident Greek colony. It dates to immoderate clip aft the precise earliest colony astatine Rome. This is precisely similar however Evander’s Greek metropolis allegedly came sometime aft the founding of Valentia according to Ateius Philologus.

Thus, from 1 perspective, Evander was the 1 who founded Rome. He seemingly did this successful the mid-eighth period BCE. Perhaps by coincidence, this corresponds to the accepted day of the founding of Rome, 753 BCE.

When Rome was founded by Romulus

Now we travel to the astir important of Rome’s foundings. According to the earliest records, Romulus was the nonstop lad of Aeneas. This would spot him a fewer generations aft Evander. This is precise absorbing due to the fact that it suggests that Romulus really lived successful the seventh period alternatively than the eighth period BCE.

The archaeological grounds for seventh-century Rome supports this conclusion. For instance, the Roman Forum was 1 of the instauration cornerstones of the city. Archaeology shows that the Forum archetypal appeared successful the seventh period BCE.

Furthermore, Romulus allegedly constructed a temple to Jupiter. According to archaeology, the archetypal temple remains successful Rome day to the seventh period BCE. This, again, supports the decision that Romulus really lived successful that century, astir 100 years aft his accepted dates.

Additional enactment for this comes from the information that an important gathering called the Regia archetypal appeared successful c. 625 BCE. Roman fable credits the Regia to Numa Pompilius, the king who came conscionable aft Romulus.

When was Rome truly founded?

In summary, what tin we accidental astir the existent day of the founding of Rome? Well, the archaeology indicates that the astir celebrated founding, which was the 1 by Romulus, really occurred successful the mid-seventh period BCE, astir 100 years aft the accepted date.

However, it appears that determination was a founding of Rome adjacent 753 BCE, though not connected to Romulus. In reality, the archaeology suggests that this was erstwhile the Greeks founded a colony astatine the aboriginal tract of Rome. This would truthful beryllium a lucifer for Evander’s city. Yet not adjacent this was the earliest founding of Rome. Before then, a colony already existed astatine the Palatine Hill, apt the root of the legendary Valentia recorded by Atieus Philologus.