Last week, archeologists in Rome reckon they stumbled on the location of Lupercale, the mythical(?) location where Romulus and Remus were suckled by a she-wolf before growing big and strong and founding what would end up as Rome (but could’ve been called Reme). You know the story. So do I.
(Just for good measure, here’s another picture of suckling babies. Disturbing.)
But what I never realised was that the Ancient Romans actually had a location where the cave was supposed to be. A cave which was deservedly revered by Romans who loved the whole she-wolf thing. A cave which was built over by Emperor Augustus’ palace when the Republic became the Empire. A cave which was then bizarrly forgotten about. A cave which has now been rediscoved underneath Augustus’ palace on the Palatine Hill. Yay for legends with a proven factual basis!
It’d be cool to look around it when they’ve finished excavating. Presuming of course that it’s accessible and doesn’t get closed for safety reasons before it even gets opened. We’ll see. I’m adding it to my list of things to see next time I’m in Rome.
