Foundation of Rome

Augusto Fraschetti is Professor of Roman History at La Sapienza University in Rome and an associate director of studies at the École Pratique des Hautes Études in Paris.

• Contents; Translators' note; Abbreviations; Preface; 1. The twins; 1. The Vestal and the she-wolf; 2. Grandparents and ancestors; 3. An adolescence in the bosom of 'nature': the world of the luperci; 4. At the conquest of Alba; 2. The foundation; 1. On the site of Rome: taking the auspices, and the death of Remus; 2. 'Roma Quadrata' and the pomerium; 3. The civic body and its organs; 4. The abduction of the women and the war against the Sabines; 5. From the domestic fires of the curiae to the hearth of Vesta; 6. Archaeology and the 'rights' of criticism; 7. Settlements and festive rituals: from Romulus to Tullus Hostilius; 3. Romulus' government and his wars; 1. Romulus 'the lawgiver'; 2. The calendar; 3. The joint reign of Romulus and Titus Tatius; 4. Romulus' wars; 4. The disappearance of the founder: Romulus 'cut into pieces' or his apotheosis; 1. The founder's disappearance: two traditions; 2. The ascent into heaven: the highly ambiguous characteristics of a tradition; 3. Romulus and the god Quirinus; 4. The dismemberment of the body: comparativist perspectives; 5. Romulus in the South Seas; 6. A Roman view: the disappearance of Romulus and the foundation of the comitia; 7. The body of Romulus and the origins of the patriciate; 8. The death of Romulus and the destiny of Caesar; Epilogue: The twins: a view from the Bosphorus; Appendix I. The ambiguous status of Tarpeia; Appendix II. A wall at the foot of the Palatine Hill; Notes; Bibliography Index of names and ancient places Index of characters and modern authors.