ROMAN GODS HEROES AND MYTHOLOGY BY PATRICE SHERMAN CONTENT CONSULTANT Carl A P Ruck Professor of Classical Studies Boston University Cover image Minerva the goddess of wisdom and sometimes war is often shown with a helmet Core Library An Imprint of Abdo Publishing abdobooks com GODS HEROES AND MYTHOLOGY
CHAPTER ONE 4
THE ORIGINS OF ROME R omulus and Remus were alone in the world They lay crying in a basket on the shores of the River Tiber hungry and cold with no one to protect them Yet these abandoned twins were princes with royal blood Their grandfather King Numitor had ruled the city of Alba Longa in the region of Latium But the king’s brother Amulius had seized power He forced Numitor into exile far from the city Amulius wanted to make sure that Numitor had no descendants to claim the throne When the king’s daughter Rhea Silvia gave birth to A wolf cared for infants Romulus and Remus 5
