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Some writers think that Larentia, from her unchaste life, had got the nickname of "She-wolf" amongst the shepherds, and that this was the origin of the marvellous story

Just think, if she was a hooker, there probably would not be a statue of her in front of the court house in Rome, Georgia!

Bob, you are the king of the one-liners!

THis Roman coin was minted about 279-278 bc.

BTW, Stan, I don't know what the story is with that particular statue but clearly the image of the babies being suckled by the wolf was know in ancient times. That writing looks like Greek to me.

Yeah, it looks somewhat like Greek, but not like standard-Greek, if there was such a thing then.
Where is Jean-Marie when you need him?

Do you know a date and a place for that mosaic, Bob?

Well, RC. Wasn't almost everything Roman orignally Greek or Etruscans? But I think that even the Etruscans borrowed from the Greeks.

thanks for posting that mosaic!

All this makes me appreciate Livy even more...in his account, he
acknowledges that it might all be all apocryphal.

By the way, if the henchman were supposed to KILL romulus and
remus, why didn't they just drown them instead of putting them in a nice little floating basket?

Could this story have roots in the story of Moses?

Could the story of Moses be stolen from the much older Osiris myth?

Well, history repeats itself, doesn't it?
And again, and again.

Rokcet Scientist wrote:Yeah, it looks somewhat like Greek, but not like standard-Greek, if there was such a thing then.
Where is Jean-Marie when you need him?

Do you know a date and a place for that mosaic, Bob?

No I don't. It was one of a series accompanying someone's art history lecture.

And the writing does look Etruscan if you compare it to this.

IT says "Special - Large Pizza - $10.99."

ROTFLMAO!!!

Good morning!

This wonderful site has brought me a lot of enjoyment over quite a few years - my heartfelt "THANKS!!!!" to Michelle and the archaeologica-team for providing this fabulous service and their quest to further knowledge and understanding.

I hope you have room at your merry little round table for a fellow lover of all things history, who every once in a while, just like the blind chicken that finds a kernel of corn, feels she can provide an answer to a question... and that you won't hold my amateur status against me, if I make a mistake...

The language on the mosaic is Greek. The Greek language has changed a few times during the course of history, and I seem to remember that Linear A and Linear B are ancient predecessors to the Archaic Greek that evolved into the current, Modern Greek spoken today in Greece.

The location of the mosaic could be anywhere in the areas that were influenced by the conquests of Alexander the Great, but my best guess is that it is somewhere in Northern Greece, in ancient "Macedonia" (not to be confused with the current areas and countries that all lay claim to the name of "Macedonia" - that's a can of worms I'm not opening ).

This conclusion is based on the few words that I can positively decipher - second from last line reads "Pavlou tou theo fili kai filo..." and the last word "Makedon..." and the name "Romulos" on the right next to the figure under the wolf... among a few others...

Modern Greek (with disregard to even a semblance of grammar): Pavlou = Paul, tou = of, theo = god, fili = friends, kai = and, filo = friend...

The "f" in "filo" or "fili" is transcribed into English with a "ph"... as in philosophy, Philadelphia (the city of brotherly love; adelphos = brother), and the like...

The circle with the little star symbol above the wolf's tail looks like a stylized version of the Royal Macedon Sun symbol used by Phillip II and Alexander the Great. Excavations in ancient Olynthos (which was razed to the ground by Phillip II), Vergina (where a Royal Macedon tomb was found) and quite a few other sites in Northern Greece have produced magnificent mosaics, but due to the lack of funds, most have been covered up again to protect the artwork against the elements and vandalism. I don't know if this picture shows one of them, or if the mosaic is one found outside of modern-day Greece...

Aeneas, a hero of the Trojan War, is the reputed ancestor of the Romans...

Hmmm, this is pure speculation on my part (I'm not an expert ), but it it would appear that the owner of this mosaic was not only rich, but also boasted of connections to a royal household... for all the envious guests to see, when they show up for lavish entertainment at this dress-for-success venue... The ancient version of an expensive pad in Manhattan, with a doormat that reads "wipe your feet"...

Cheers!

Thanks for illuminating that, Linguist.
As a linguist, this link – http://www.prehistory.it/ftp/arta_populara01.htm – posted by DayBrown, may be interesting to you.