The first small settlements on the Roman hills have been dated by archaeologists to the tenth century BC, well before the traditional date of the city's foundation: April 21st 753BC. And it's unlikely even the Roman historians believed that the city was founded by Romulus and Remus, twins reared by a she-wolf. But it makes for a discernible starting point, and the Roman calculation of years was often expressed by X number of years ab urbe condita: from the founding of the city.
In reading about the history
of early Rome, you will come across references to, for example, the Etruscans,
the Volscians and the Sabines. This simple map shows where they were located in
relation to the region of Latium where Rome is situated.
The second image is of a map published in 1609 showing the region of Latium. Circled is Rome itself to which the cartographer has added urbs aeterna: the eternal city.
No comments:
Post a Comment