'Wolf cave' revealed

Nov 21 2007

Italian archaeologists unveiled the underground grotto believed to have been worshipped by ancient Romans as the place where a wolf nursed the city's legendary founder Romulus and his twin brother Remus.

Decorated with seashells and coloured marble, the vaulted sanctuary lies buried 52 feet down inside the Palatine hill, the palatial centre of power in imperial Rome.

The archaeologists are convinced that they have found the place of worship where Romans believed a she-wolf suckled Romulus and Remus, the twin sons of the god of war Mars abandoned in a basket and left adrift on the River Tiber.

Thanks to the wolf, a symbol of Rome to this day, the twins survived and Romulus founded the city, becoming its first king after killing Remus in a power struggle.