Palatine Hill

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The Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills of Rome
In Latin / Italian	Palatium / Colle Palatino
Rione	Campitelli
Buildings	Flavian Palace
People	Cicero, Augustus, Tiberius, Domitian
Events	Finding of Romulus and Remus
Ancient Roman religion	Temple of Apollo Palatinus, Temple of Cybele, Lupercalia, Secular Games
Mythological figures	Romulus and Remus, Faustulus

17th century aviaries on the hill, built by Rainaldi for Odoardo Cardinal Farnese: once wirework cages surmounted them.

Massive retaining walls extended the area on the Palatine available for the Imperial building complex.

The Palatine Hill (Latin: Palatium) is the centermost of the seven hills of Rome and is one of the most ancient parts of the city of Rome in Italy. It is some 70 metres high and looks down on one side upon the Forum Romanum and on the other side upon the Circus Maximus.

1 Mythology
2 History
3 Location
- 3.1 Excavations
4 Etymology
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Mythology

According to Roman mythology, the Palatine hill was where Romulus and Remus were found by the she-wolf that kept them alive. According to this legend, the shepherd Faustulus found the infants, and with his wife Acca Larentia raised the children. When they were older this is where Romulus decided to build Rome.

[edit] History

Rome has its origins on the Palatine. Indeed, recent excavations show that people have lived there since approximately 1000 BC.

Many affluent Romans of the Republican period (510 BC – c. 44 BC) had their residences there. The ruins of the palaces of Augustus (63 BC – 14), Tiberius (42 BC – 37) and Domitian (51 – 96) can still be seen. Augustus also built a temple to Apollo here, beside his house.

The Palatine Hill was also the site of the festival of the Lupercalia.

[edit] Location

One building, believed to be the residence of Livia (58 BC – 29), the wife of Augustus, is currently undergoing renovation. Situated near to the house of Livia is the temple of Cybele, currently not fully excavated and not open to the public. Behind this structure, cut into the side of the hill, is the so-called House of Tiberius.

Overlooking the Forum Romanum is the Flavian Palace which was built largely during the reign of the Flavian dynasty (69 – 96) – Vespasian, Titus and Domitian. This palace, which was extended and modified by several emperors, extends across the Palatine Hill and looks out over the Circus Maximus. The building of the greater part the palace visible from the Circus was undertaken in the reign of the emperor Septimius Severus (146 – 211).

Immediately adjacent to the palace of Severus is the stadium of Domitian. This is a structure which has the appearance of a Roman Circus, but is of insufficient size to accommodate chariots. Its exact purpose is disputed. It may have been a venue for foot-racing, field sports or equestrian events.

The Palatine Hill is now a large open-air museum and can be visited during the daytime for a small charge. The entrance is near the Arch of Titus on the Forum Romanum.

[edit] Excavations

During Augustus' reign, an area of the Palatine Hill was roped off for a sort of archaeological expedition, which found fragments of Bronze Age pots and tools. He declared this site the "original town of Rome". Modern archaeology has identified evidence of Bronze Age settlement in the area which predates Rome's founding. There is a museum on the Palatine in which artifacts dating from before the official foundation of the City are displayed. The museum also contains Roman statuary.

An altar to an unknown deity, once thought to be Aius Locutius, was discovered here in 1820.

In July 2006, archaeologists announced the discovery of the Palatine House, which they believe to be the birthplace of Rome's first Emperor, Augustus.^[1] Head archaeologist Clementina Panella stated that the team had uncovered a section of corridor and other fragments under Rome's Palatine Hill, which she described on July 20 as "a very ancient aristocratic house." The two story house appears to have been built around an atrium, with frescoed walls and mosaic flooring, and is situated on the slope of the Palatine that overlooks the Colisseum and the Arch of Constantine. The Republican-era houses on the Palatine were overbuilt by later palaces after the Great Fire of Rome (64), but apparently this one was not; the tempting early inference is that it was preserved for a specific and important reason. On the ground floor, three shops opened onto the Via Sacra.

The location of the domus is important because of its potential proximity to the Curiae Veteres, the earliest shrine of the curies of Rome.^[2]

[edit] Etymology

According to Livy (59 BC – 17) the Palatine hill got its name from the Arcadian settlement of Pallantium. The term palace itself stems from Palatium.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

^ For a classical account of the birth (and birthplace) of Augustus, refer to: Suetonius, Life of Augustus, 5.
^ Varro Linguae Latinae 5.155; Festus L 174; Tacitus Annales 12.24