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In the Roman foundation myth, it was a she-
wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...
(lupa) that nursed and sheltered the twins
Romulus and Remus In Roman mythology, Romulus and Remus (, ) are twin brothers whose story tells of the events that led to the founding of the city of Rome and the Roman Kingdom by Romulus, following his fratricide of Remus. The image of a she-wolf suckling the ...
after they were abandoned in the wild by order of King Amulius of
Alba Longa Alba Longa (occasionally written Albalonga in Italian sources) was an ancient Latin city in Central Italy, 12 miles (19 km) southeast of Rome, in the vicinity of Lake Albano in the Alban Hills. Founder and head of the Latin League, it was d ...
. She cared for the infants at her den, a cave known as the
Lupercal The Lupercal (from Latin '' lupa'' "female wolf") was a cave at the southwest foot of the Palatine Hill in Rome, located somewhere between the temple of Magna Mater and the Sant'Anastasia al Palatino. In the legend of the founding of Rome, Romu ...
, until they were discovered by a shepherd,
Faustulus In Roman mythology, Faustulus was the shepherd who found the infant Romulus (the future founder of the city of Rome) and his twin brother Remus along the banks of the Tiber River as they were being suckled by the she-wolf, Lupa. According to leg ...
.
Romulus Romulus () was the legendary foundation of Rome, founder and King of Rome, first king of Ancient Rome, Rome. Various traditions attribute the establishment of many of Rome's oldest legal, political, religious, and social institutions to Romulus ...
would later become the founder and first king of Rome. The image of the she-wolf suckling the twins has been a symbol of
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
since ancient times and is one of the most recognizable icons of ancient mythology.


Origins

There is evidence that the wolf held a special place in the world of the ancient peoples of Italy. One legend claims that the
Hirpini The Hirpini (Latin: ') were an ancient Samnite tribe of Southern Italy. While generally regarded as having been Samnites, sometimes they are treated as a distinct and independent nation. They inhabited the southern portion of Samnium, in the more ...
people were so-called because, when they set out to find their first colony, they were led to its location by a wolf (from the
Osco-Umbrian The Osco-Umbrian, Sabellic or Sabellian languages are an extinct group of Italic languages, the Indo-European languages that were spoken in Central and Southern Italy by the Osco-Umbrians before being replaced by Latin, as the power of Ancient Rom ...
word for wolf: ''hirpus''). The tale of the Lupercal is central to that of the twins, and probably predates theirs. To the Roman god
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...
, the wolf is a sacred animal. There is an ongoing debate about a connection to the ancient Roman festival of the
Lupercalia Lupercalia was a pastoral festival of Ancient Rome observed annually on February 15 to purify the city, promoting health and fertility. Lupercalia was also known as ''dies Februatus'', after the purification instruments called ''februa'', the b ...
. In
Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...
,
Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
's mother
Leto In ancient Greek mythology and Ancient Greek religion, religion, Leto (; grc-gre, Λητώ , ''Lētṓ'', or , ''Lātṓ'' in Ancient Greek dialects#Provenance, Doric Greek) is a goddess and the mother of Apollo, the god of music, and Artemis ...
is reported to have given birth to him as a she-wolf, to evade
Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...
.


Literary sources

The 3 "canonical" versions of the myth—those of
Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Ancient Rome, Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditiona ...
,
Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...
and
Dionysius of Halicarnassus Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary sty ...
—all draw heavily on
Quintus Fabius Pictor Quintus Fabius Pictor (born BC, BC) was the earliest known Roman historian. His history, written in Greek and now mostly lost besides some surviving fragments, was highly influential on ancient writers and certainly participated in introducing Gree ...
. He is considered one of Rome's earliest historians and his now lost work describes the she-wolf and her episode with the twins. The twins were abandoned at the order of Amulius. Some tales claim that they were to be left along the riverbank, others that they were to be cast into the water. The servant charged with the task either thought better of it, or could not get close enough to do the deed because of the flooding. Instead, he left them in the standing water that had formed at the foot of
Palatine Hill The Palatine Hill (; la, Collis Palatium or Mons Palatinus; it, Palatino ), which relative to the seven hills of Rome is the centremost, is one of the most ancient parts of the city and has been called "the first nucleus of the Roman Empire." ...
. The twins were found either after their basket had been left at the foot of the fig tree, or came to rest there after floating in the water. In each case, the she-wolf rescued them and gently cared for them in or near the Lupercal. Later, they were discovered by local shepherds. Dionysius reports that the rains had raised the water so much so that Amulius' servant had to abandon the twins, before the intended spot (where the current was stronger). The basket, containing the twins, gently went with the receding water until it struck a stone, flipping the twins and the basket into the mud. The she-wolf then arrived and lowered her teats to the crying babes, and licked them clean of the mud. After a shepherd happened upon the scene in the course of tending his flock, he ran to tell his companions, and a group gathered to witness the remarkable sight. The twins were clinging to her as she was their true mother. The she-wolf was nonplussed when the men began making a ruckus to scare her off. She withdrew into a cave that was sacred to the Greek colonists who had formerly lived in the area and held an altar to the nature god Pan. Livy claims that the servants of Amulius dropped the twins in the standing water out of simple laziness. The fig tree just happened to be the first spot they came to and they figured the twins would drown no matter what. The twins cried in their basket until the waters receded and left them back on land. The she-wolf arrived from the hills looking for a drink of water when she heard their cries. The servant was too afraid of the torrential waters to fully carry out the king's orders, according to Plutarch. After being left on the bank, the waters rose further and swept the twins away. It gently carried them along and then dropped them at the fig tree. The three relay accounts wherein the term "lupa" refers not to a she-wolf, but is a slang word for prostitute. Plutarch tells two other stories not involving the she-wolf or abandonment. In one, the twins are fathered by
Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...
after he wins a dice game. Their mother is the unwitting "prize". In another, the twins are switched at birth by their grandfather for a different pair of infants and secreted out of the city to be raised by shepherds and later, educated in nearby
Gabii Gabii was an ancient city of Latium, located due east of Rome along the Via Praenestina, which was in early times known as the ''Via Gabina''. It was on the south-eastern perimeter of an extinct volcanic crater lake, approximately circular ...
.


Iconography


Earliest representation

The Etruscan "Bolsena Mirror" features a depiction of the she-wolf and the twins surrounded by human and animal figures. Differences in interpretation have precluded virtually any consensus regarding many of its features. This includes its age. However, it is consistent with other such mirrors, made as bridal gifts, in 4th century BC Euritria, perhaps circa 330–340. The famous
Capitoline Wolf The Capitoline Wolf (Italian: ''Lupa Capitolina'') is a bronze sculpture depicting a scene from the legend of the founding of Rome. The sculpture shows a she-wolf suckling the mythical twin founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. According to the ...
may be of
Etruscan __NOTOC__ Etruscan may refer to: Ancient civilization *The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy *Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization **Etruscan architecture **Etruscan art **Etruscan cities ** Etrusca ...
or
Old Latin Old Latin, also known as Early Latin or Archaic Latin (Classical la, prīsca Latīnitās, lit=ancient Latinity), was the Latin language in the period before 75 BC, i.e. before the age of Classical Latin. It descends from a common Proto-Italic ...
origin. But, a discovery during its restoration in 2000 and
radiocarbon dating Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of radiocarbon, a radioactive isotope of carbon. The method was dev ...
has cast doubt on an ancient origin.Adriano La Regina
''Roma, l'inganno della Lupa è "nata" nel Medioevo
' "Rome: the phony She-Wolf wasn't born until the Middle-ages" La Republica. 17 November 2006, accessed 1 December 2016
An Etruscan
stele A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ''stelæ''), whe ...
from
Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...
, dated to between 350 and 400 BC, depicts an animal, possibly a wolf, nursing a single infant. By 269 BC, the silver
didrachm The drachma ( el, δραχμή , ; pl. ''drachmae'' or ''drachmas'') was the currency used in Greece during several periods in its history: # An ancient Greek currency unit issued by many Greek city states during a period of ten centuries, fro ...
is the earliest depiction of the complete icon, with the characteristic "turning of the she-wolf's head" backward and downward at the twins.Rissanen p.336 The distinctive imagery of the she-wolf and the twins made it more recognizable than other symbols of the city, such as
Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
, the patron deity of the city, or the Roman eagle. That was useful as the Roman world expanded and symbols of Rome became more important in maintaining unity. By the 1st century AD, the she-wolf was common in both Rome and the provinces. She and the twins were featured on the elaborate
Ara Pacis The Ara Pacis Augustae (Latin, "Altar of Augustan Peace"; commonly shortened to Ara Pacis) is an altar in Rome dedicated to Pax, the Roman goddess of Peace. The monument was commissioned by the Roman Senate on July 4, 13 BC to honour the return of ...
, built in honor of
Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
and dedicated to
Pax Pax or PAX may refer to: Peace * Peace (Latin: ''pax'') ** Pax (goddess), the Roman goddess of peace ** Pax, a truce term * Pax (liturgy), a salutation in Catholic and Lutheran religious services * Pax (liturgical object), an object formerly kiss ...
, the goddess of peace. Coins with their depiction were minted and widely circulated. They were also produced in Roman Colonies as a way to express their own "Roman-ness". They have been found on personal items such as swords, buckles, lamps and statuettes as well as monuments, mosaic floors and funerary stones that date from the 1st through the 3rd centuries AD. File:Bolsena mirror Roscher Lexikon p1465.jpg, The controversial Mirror of Bolsena. File:Cr 20-1-Reverse.jpg, Romulus and Remus. An early silver didrachm (6.44 g). c. 269–266 BC File:She-wolf suckles Romulus and Remus.jpg,
Capitoline Wolf The Capitoline Wolf (Italian: ''Lupa Capitolina'') is a bronze sculpture depicting a scene from the legend of the founding of Rome. The sculpture shows a she-wolf suckling the mythical twin founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. According to the ...
. Its ancient origin is now in doubt.


Early middle ages

The
Franks Casket The Franks Casket (or the Auzon Casket) is a small Anglo-Saxon whale's bone (not "whalebone" in the sense of baleen) chest from the early 8th century, now in the British Museum. The casket is densely decorated with knife-cut narrative scenes in ...
, an ornately carved
Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
chest from the 8th–9th century, probably crafted in Northumbria, features the she-wolf and twins, along with a
Runic Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were used to write various Germanic languages (with some exceptions) before they adopted the Latin alphabet, and for specialised ...
account of the Romulus and Remus story. Other Anglo-Saxon artifacts and coins from the same period also feature them. The
Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
s continued to use the image, and coins attributed to them have been found in various locations in
central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
at sites located in modern
Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
and
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...
along with an 8th-century Sogdian painted mural with a she-wolf, head turned back and down, suckling two infants.


Sports

The Italian
football clubs A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all- ...
A.S. Roma ' (''Rome Sport Association''), commonly referred to as Roma (), is a professional football club based in Rome, Italy. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma has participated in the top tier of Italian football for all of its existence, except for ...
and
S.S. Robur Siena Associazione Calcio Robur Siena 1904, commonly referred to as Siena, is an Italian football club based in Siena, Tuscany. The club was re-incorporated in 2020 after the bankruptcy of the previous legal entity Robur Siena, which itself was the ...
use the imagery in their respective team logos.


Mussolini

The Fascist government of
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
made use of the she-wolf while in power.


Coats of arms and emblems

File:Blason Es famille Ariño (Navarre).svg, The coat of arms of the
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
Family Ariño of
Navarre Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
''El Solar Vasco-Navarro'', A. et A. Garcia Caraffa, 6 vol. San Sebastian, 1966–1967 File:Blason Es famille Artolaguirre (Donostia).svg, The coat of arms of the
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
Family Artolaguirre of Donostia File:CoA mil ITA grp artiglieria 009.png, The coat of arms of the 9th Self-propelled Field Artillery Group ("Brennero") of the
Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...
File:Blason Caudebec-lès-Elbeuf.svg, The coat of arms of the
Commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
of
Caudebec-lès-Elbeuf Caudebec-lès-Elbeuf (, literally ''Caudebec near Elbeuf'') is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Geography A residential and light industrial town situated by the banks of the river Seine, som ...
,
Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
, France File:Actual Cluj county CoA.svg, The coat of arms of
Cluj County Cluj County (; german: Kreis Klausenburg, hu, Kolozs megye) is a county ( județ) of Romania, in Transylvania. Its seat ( ro, Oraș reședință de județ) is Cluj-Napoca (german: Klausenburg). Name In Hungarian, it is known as ''Kolozs megye ...
, Romania File:Stemma-Codogno-Italy.JPG, The coat of arms of the city of
Codogno Codogno (; Lodigiano: ) is a town and ''comune'' of 15,868 inhabitants in the province of Lodi, Lombardy, northern Italy. It is the main center of the plain known as Basso Lodigiano, which has about 90,000 inhabitants. It received the honorary tit ...
,
Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...
Italy, featuring the she-wolf leashed to a tree File:Blason Antoine Dubois (1756-1837).svg, The emblem of
surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...
and
obstetrician Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...
to
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
,
Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
Antoine Dubois Baron Antoine Dubois (19 June 1756 – 30 March 1837) was a French surgeon born in Gramat, department of Lot. As the consultant-surgeon, and head of maternity services to Napoleon and his wife the Empress Marie Louise of Austria, Dubois delivere ...
, (1756–1837) File:Blason Estillac.svg, The coat of arms of the
Commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
of Estillac,
Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by t ...
, France File:CoA mil ITA rgt fanteria 080.png, The coat of arms of the 80° Infantry Regiment of the
Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...
. File:CommunesBelgique-La-Louviere.svg, The coat of arms of La Louviere,
Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...
,
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
File:Interbelic Nasaud County CoA.png, The coat of arms of
Năsăud County Năsăud County is one of the historic counties of Transylvania, Romania. The county seat was Bistrița. Geography Năsăud County was located in the north-central part of Greater Romania, in the north of Transylvania, covering . Currently, the te ...
, Romania File:Antico Stemma Piacenza.jpg, The ancient coat of arms of the city of
Piacenza Piacenza (; egl, label= Piacentino, Piaṡëinsa ; ) is a city and in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, and the capital of the eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with over ...
,
Emilia-Romagna egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title ...
, Italy File:CoA mil ITA rgt genio 08.png, The coat of arms of the 8° Engineer Regiment of the
Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...
File:La lupa municipale 051214-01.JPG, Emblem of the Capital Police of the Municipality of Rome File:Blason ville Rome-Empire.svg, Reconstruction of the coat of arms of Rome under
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
File:CoA mil ITA scuola genio.png, The coat of arms of the Combat Engineer School of the
Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...
. File:CoA mil ITA scuola trasmissioni.png, The emblem of the Italian Army Signal School File:Blason ville fr Villeloin-Coulangé (Indre-et-Loire).svg, The coat of arms of the
Commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
of
Villeloin-Coulangé Villeloin-Coulangé () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. Geography The Indrois flows northwest through the commune and crosses the village. Population See also *Communes of the Indre-et-Loire department The ...
,
Centre-Val de Loire Centre-Val de Loire (, , ,In isolation, ''Centre'' is pronounced . ) or Centre Region (french: région Centre, link=no, ), as it was known until 2015, is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France. It straddles the middle Loire Valley ...
, France


Siena She-Wolf

The
Sienese Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...
have a traditional tale that the city was founded by
Senius and Aschius Senius and Aschius are the two legendary founders of Siena, Italy. They were brothers, sons of Remus, and thus Romulus was their uncle. Traditions developed in Siena, which can not be documented prior to the 16th century hold that after Romulus ...
, another pair of twins who were also suckled by a she-wolf. They were the sons of Remus and fled Rome after his death at the hands of their uncle Romulus. The legend cannot be attested to prior to the Renaissance. However, depictions of a she-wolf and twins are common in the city and some can be dated earlier. File:Toscana Siena6 tango7174.jpg, ''Ruota della Fortuna'' "The Wheel of Fortune" is the Centerpiece of the mosaic inlaid floor of the
Siena Cathedral Siena Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary. It was the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, and ...
(c.1372)


Notes and coins

The she-wolf and twins appeared on what may have been the earliest silver coin ever minted in Rome. File:Sextans 2710029.jpg, Sextans from c.215 BC File:Satriena1.jpg, The she-wolf on a coin from c.77 BC With the head of Mars on the other side. File:Romania LeuBanknote 1915.jpg, 1
Romanian leu The Romanian leu (, plural lei ; ISO code: RON; numeric code: 946) is the currency of Romania. It is subdivided into 100 (, singular: ), a word that means "money" in Romanian. Etymology The name of the currency means "lion", and is derive ...
banknote, 1915.


Lupercalia

The
Lupercalia Lupercalia was a pastoral festival of Ancient Rome observed annually on February 15 to purify the city, promoting health and fertility. Lupercalia was also known as ''dies Februatus'', after the purification instruments called ''februa'', the b ...
was a very ancient festival even during Roman times. Roman historians speculated as to its origins. It may be associated with the god Lupercus, the god of
shepherds A shepherd or sheepherder is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. ''Shepherd'' derives from Old English ''sceaphierde (''sceap'' 'sheep' + ''hierde'' 'herder'). ''Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations, i ...
and protector of flocks. Some historians link it to the she-wolf and the Lupercal.


Depictions in art


Late antiquity

File:Mosaic depicting the She-wolf with Romulus and Remus, from Aldborough, about 300-400 AD, Leeds City Museum (16025914306).jpg, Mosaic depicting the She-wolf with Romulus and Remus, from Aldborough (c.300 AD), Leeds City Museum (16025914306)


Middle ages

File:Perugia - Fontana Maggiore - 6 - La lupa e la Vestale (copie) - Foto G. Dall'Orto 5 ago 2006.jpg, Replica of ''Fontana Maggiore'' of Perugia, Nocolai and
Giovanni Giovanni may refer to: * Giovanni (name), an Italian male given name and surname * Giovanni (meteorology), a Web interface for users to analyze NASA's gridded data * ''Don Giovanni'', a 1787 opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on the legend of ...
Pisano (1275), photo by G. Dall'Orto (August 5, 2006) File:Romulus and Remus - British Library Royal MS 19 E v f32r (detail).jpg, From ''Romuleon'', an illuminated manuscript (British Library (1480)


Renaissance

File:Peter Paul Rubens - Romulus and Remus - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Romulus and Remus'',
Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...
(1616) File:Wenceslas Hollar - Romulus and Remus, after Giulio Romano.jpg, ''Romulus and Remus''
Wenceslas Hollar Wenceslaus Hollar (23 July 1607 – 25 March 1677) was a prolific and accomplished Bohemian graphic artist of the 17th century, who spent much of his life in England. He is known to German speakers as ; and to Czech speakers as . He is particu ...
after
Giulio Romano Giulio Romano (, ; – 1 November 1546), is the acquired name of Giulio Pippi, who was an Italian painter and architect. He was a pupil of Raphael, and his stylistic deviations from High Renaissance classicism help define the sixteenth-centu ...
, (16c.) File:Quattro Fontane - The River Tiber.jpg, ''The River Tiber'' from the
Quattro Fontane The Quattro Fontane (the Four Fountains) is an ensemble of four Late Renaissance fountains located at the intersection of Via delle Quattro Fontane and Via del Quirinale in Rome. They were commissioned by Pope Sixtus V and built at the direction ...
by
Muzio Mattei Muzio Mattei (died 1596) was an Italian nobleman of the House of Mattei. He helped the Mattei rise to prominence by supporting political and cultural initiatives of the Pope and the Church in Rome. Political activity Mattei and his family were Ro ...
and
Domenico Fontana Domenico Fontana (154328 June 1607) was an Italian architect of the late Renaissance, born in today's Ticino. He worked primarily in Italy, at Rome and Naples. Biography He was born at Melide, a village on the Lake Lugano, at that time joint p ...
(late 16c.). The she-wolf can be see peeking from behind
Father Tiber Tiberinus is a figure in Roman mythology. He was the god of the Tiber River. He was added to the 3,000 rivers (sons of Oceanus and Tethys), as the genius of the Tiber. Mythology According to Book VIII of Virgil's epic ''Aeneid'', Tiberinus helpe ...
on the right.


18th-20th Centuries

File:La lupa con Romolo e Remo di Domenico Parodi e Francesco Biggi.JPG, ''La lupa con Romolo e Remo'' "The She-Wolf with Romulus and Remus",
Domenico Parodi Domenico Parodi (1672 – 19 December 1742, in Genoa) was an Italian painter, as well as a sculptor and architect, of the late-Baroque. He was the son of the famous Genoese sculptor Filippo Parodi and the older brother of the Baroque painter Gi ...
and Francesco Biggi (1874) File:Rome Liddell 1860 Lupa Capitolina.jpg, Scanned from "History of Rome", published 1860, by Henry Liddell (6 February 1811 – 18 January 1898) with illustrations provided by Sir John Gardner Wilkinson (5 October 1797 – 29 October 1875). Scanned by Man vyi File:David Ozeransky from Ten Tribes (1932).jpg, ''Romulus and Remus'' from Ten Tribes, sculptor:
Eric Gill Arthur Eric Rowton Gill, (22 February 1882 – 17 November 1940) was an English sculptor, letter cutter, typeface designer, and printmaker. Although the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' describes Gill as ″the greatest artist-cra ...
, photo by David Ozeransky (1932) File:Comic History of Rome Table 01 Romulus and Remus discovered by a gentle shepherd.jpg, ''Comic History of Rome Table 01'', featuring a matronly she-wolf and
Picus Picus was a figure in Roman mythology, the first king of Latium. He was the son of Saturn, also known as Stercutus. He was the founder of the first Latin tribe and settlement, Laurentum, located a few miles to the Southeast of the site of the lat ...
, the woodpecker overhead. John Leech (c.1850)


See also

*
List of wolves This is a list of famous individual wolves, pairs of wolves, or wolf packs. For a list of wolf subspecies, see Subspecies of Canis lupus. For a list of all species in the Canidae family, several of which are named "wolves", see list of canids. Li ...


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * {{Authority control 8th century BC in the Roman Kingdom Characters in Roman mythology Female legendary creatures Female mammals