Romulus and Remus Given Shelter by Faustulus
by CORTONA, Pietro da, Oil on canvas, 251 x 266 cm
The twin brothers Romulus and Remus are the legendary founders of Rome. Their mother, a Vestal Virgin, explained her pregnancy by claiming she had been violated by Mars, the god of war. She was thrown into prison and the children were ordered to be drowned in the Tiber. They survived and were reared by a she-wolf, and by a woodpecker that watched over them and brought them food. They were discovered by Faustulus, the herdsman.