Capitoline She-wolf

The statue of the She-Wolf

The Rome audio-guided tour presents you, at the top of its column, with the famous She-Wolf suckling Romulus and Remus, icon of the mythology of the city.

The legend of the founding of Rome

The statue you admire is a replica; the original, the Capitoline She-Wolf, is preserved at the Capitoline Museums. According to the myth, the priestess Rhea Silvia, daughter of King Numitor, gave birth to twins, Romulus and Remus, conceived by the god Mars. When Numitor was overthrown by his brother, the latter had the children thrown into the Tiber so that they could not claim the throne. The legend tells that a she-wolf took them in at the foot of the Palatine hill and fed them in her cave, until a shepherd found them and raised them. The She-Wolf suckling the twins thus became the symbol of Rome, taken up through the centuries, from the 1960 Olympic Games to the coats of arms and clubs of the city. There are many copies of it around the world, so attached is this image to the identity of the eternal city.

What there is to see

The statue of the She-Wolf, standing on its column, embodies the founding myth of Rome in a striking shortcut. A replica of the famous Capitoline She-Wolf, it recalls the legend of Romulus and Remus to those who do not visit the Capitoline Museums. It is a symbolic stage, in the heart of the historic hill.

Practical information

The statue of the She-Wolf is on the Capitoline hill, in Rome. The replica can be contemplated freely outdoors; the original is preserved at the Capitoline Museums, whose visit is generally subject to a charge.

What does the statue of the She-Wolf represent?

The she-wolf that, according to the legend, took in and fed Romulus and Remus, the founding twins of Rome.

Where is the original She-Wolf?

At the Capitoline Museums; the statue visible outdoors is a replica of this icon of Rome.