Genuine Roman coin silver pendant depicting the She-wolf; god Mars on the rear
$659.00
- • Handmade 100% Made in Italy • Genuine Roman Silver Coin 1st cent. BC • Bezel material: Sterling Silver 925
An authentic Roman coin from 77 BC has been set in this sterling silver pendant. which depicts the She-wolf. On the reverse of the coin we can see the helmeted head of the god Mars.
Wolves play a particular role in Roman myth. After all, the mythical founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus, were rescued by a she-wolf. According to the myth, Amulius, the king of Alba Longa, had ordered the twins' death by throwing them into the Tiber River. The river god, Tiber, calmed the river and their basket was caught in the roots of a fig tree at the base of the Palatine Hill, where Rome would be founded. The twins were first discovered by a she-wolf, lupa, who suckled them: this famous myth is depicted in countless pieces of Roman art from across the Roman empire . Subsequently, a shepherd and his wife, Faustulus and Acca Larentia, discovered and adopted them.
Throughout the Roman period, the wolf symbolised Roman power; hence she appears frequently in art and on Roman coinage, both in the Republic and the Empire. The earliest attested statue of the she-wolf suckling the twins was set up by Gnaeus and Quintus Ogulnius, presumably near the Lupercal in 296 BC
Moreover, we find dedications to the she-wolf, for example from the Roman provinces, like a dedication to the 'Roman she-wolf' and to the 'august She-Wolf', Lupa Augusta, both of them set up by priests of the 'imperial cult' , showing the close link between the she-wolf and the Roman state.
Wolves play a particular role in Roman myth. After all, the mythical founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus, were rescued by a she-wolf. According to the myth, Amulius, the king of Alba Longa, had ordered the twins' death by throwing them into the Tiber River. The river god, Tiber, calmed the river and their basket was caught in the roots of a fig tree at the base of the Palatine Hill, where Rome would be founded. The twins were first discovered by a she-wolf, lupa, who suckled them: this famous myth is depicted in countless pieces of Roman art from across the Roman empire . Subsequently, a shepherd and his wife, Faustulus and Acca Larentia, discovered and adopted them.
Throughout the Roman period, the wolf symbolised Roman power; hence she appears frequently in art and on Roman coinage, both in the Republic and the Empire. The earliest attested statue of the she-wolf suckling the twins was set up by Gnaeus and Quintus Ogulnius, presumably near the Lupercal in 296 BC
Moreover, we find dedications to the she-wolf, for example from the Roman provinces, like a dedication to the 'Roman she-wolf' and to the 'august She-Wolf', Lupa Augusta, both of them set up by priests of the 'imperial cult' , showing the close link between the she-wolf and the Roman state.
