Tales of Rome. Mythology of Ancient Rome. Briefly. Myths of ancient Rome for children - the best books for young readers

Ancient Rome is not just the most powerful of the civilizations of antiquity, it is an entire era of world history and culture, which lasted from the eighth century BC to the fifth century AD. This greatest state, which during the period of its greatest power covered territories from the north of England to the north of Africa, from Gibraltar to the Persian Gulf, was named after its main city - Rome. Once a small settlement of outcasts and renegades, founded by the legendary demigod Romulus on the banks of the Tiber River, Rome eventually became the most brilliant creation of the hands of antiquity and, rightfully receiving the title of “Eternal City”, became the heart of a huge empire. It is there, in the capital of the world, that one should look for the quintessence of Roman culture, for which, in fact, this book was written. Therefore, throughout the entire story we will not be able to move far from the walls of the Eternal City.

The body of historical and cultural information about Rome is colossal; under the same cover you will find only a brief overview of Roman beliefs and legends. Roman culture is specific and interesting in that, having absorbed and absorbed for centuries the customs and morals of conquered peoples, it retained its own core and its own unique spirit under all these layers. By selecting stories for this book, we intended to acquaint the reader who has not previously come into contact with this era with the pantheon of Roman gods and the beliefs of the Romans, with the logic and ethics of Roman spiritual culture, with the most famous or characteristic legends and traditions of Rome. Everything written below is a presentation of the works of famous ancient authors, commented as necessary using the works of famous historians and, for ease of perception, divided into complete essays and sections. We hope that this book will be just the first step on the long path of your acquaintance with the majestic and harsh era of Ancient Rome.

When selecting subjects for further narration, we tried, firstly, to dwell only on what could really interest the modern reader, and secondly, to focus on key points in understanding Roman life: the thinking, behavior, morals and customs of the people of that era. It also seemed important to us that it was necessary to properly, from the perspective of that distant time, reveal well-known plots that were later repeatedly used in world culture.

The first section of our book is entirely devoted to the characteristics and evolution of Roman beliefs, the relationship of the Romans with the gods and spirits of the vast pantheon. The second and third sections contain a collection of the most famous, interesting and characteristic Roman legends and traditions, correlated with the outline of historical events. The last section covers a short, but probably the most illuminated period of Roman history - the century of the first emperors, where we, to the best of our ability, analyze episodes that may already be known to the reader, filling them with important details and comments that allow a more objective look at the heroes and the era .

We hope that for an inquisitive reader, open to everything new, this book will bring a lot of interesting information, extraordinary observations and, of course, many hours of fascinating reading.

On the way to the temple. Artist L. Alma-Tadema

Pantheon and beliefs of Ancient Rome

About Roman mythology

Before we begin the story about Roman myths, we should say a few words about the essence of ancient Roman mythology as such. We often perceive Roman mythology as borrowed from the Greeks, which is hardly true. In fact, the ancient Roman religion is very original and all the Greek influence on it is rather late, although impressive. The Roman pantheon is extremely vast and complex in its composition and the functions of the deities included in it, while various aspects of beliefs permeated all spheres of life of the ancient Romans.

The Roman religion developed over many centuries as the Roman state grew - from a small city to a huge empire. Let's try to briefly and superficially understand various aspects of the formation of the classical Roman pantheon - the one with which we are all most likely familiar from Greek mythology.

The most ancient objects of religious veneration among the Romans were spirits - the patrons of the family, whose cult is older than the city of Rome itself. The Romans themselves believed that the veneration of these spirits came to Rome from Lavinium and Alba Longa, the more ancient cities of Italy. Such patron spirits include manas - the shadows of the dead, protecting their family after death, the household deities of the penates and lares. Penates, Lares and Manes did not have their own names, were not personified and were revered by the Romans as a kind of nameless multitude. They will be discussed in more detail in the relevant sections.

The cult of the patrons of the clan had, of course, a private, family character. Often the patron of the clan was a certain legendary ancestor, for example, the Yuliev clan honored Yul, the son of Aeneas, in this capacity. As the state formed and the clan organization lost its significance, some clan gods began to be revered within the entire state, changing the functions attributed to them. There is an opinion, for example, that the cult of Faun, the cheerful god - patron of shepherds, originally belonged to the families of the Fabii and Quinctilians.

Like most ancient peoples known to us, the Romans also deified streams and springs. Like the Penates and Lares, these forces were represented by the Romans as a nameless multitude of spirits. The Romans revered a group of such water spirits under the name “stones.” The legendary Roman king Numa Pompilius dedicated a spring in Rome to the stones; small bronze chapels were built in their honor in the groves, where water and milk were sacrificed. Their analogues, in some way, were the Greek nymphs, and subsequently the stones were identified with the Greek muses, goddesses of the arts and sciences.

The most important starting point for the formation of the classical Roman pantheon are the so-called agrarian cults: rituals and beliefs associated with agriculture and cattle breeding. Many of the most important gods of the Roman pantheon, who received other functions in the future, trace their origins precisely to agrarian cults. For example, Mars, the god of war in the classical era, in ancient times was considered the god of fertilization, the patron saint of agriculture and cattle breeding; Venus, later identified with the Greek Aphrodite and transformed into the goddess of love and beauty, was originally the deity of gardening and viticulture.

To a large extent, the complex composition of the Roman pantheon was generated by the diversity of groups that made up the Roman community: it included Latin, Sabine and Etruscan tribes. Each tribe, each clan brought their own deities into the Roman pantheon. Over time, the Roman state grew, and when its territory included new lands, the Roman pantheon acquired new gods from all over Italy.

It should be noted that ancient Roman mythology, in comparison with Greek, is rather poor in vivid images of gods and memorable myths about their deeds. We have already mentioned the veneration of nameless multitudes of spirits; cults of such deities as Peace, Hope, Valor, and Justice were also common. These abstract concepts were practically impersonal; they could not even be considered real personifications. Nevertheless, sacrifices were made in their honor and temples were built.

It is curious that some of the ancient Roman gods did not have a specific gender, for example, the ancient deity of the shepherds Pales is mentioned as both a god and a goddess. Often the priests themselves were not sure which gender the deity belonged to, and addressed him “sive deus, sive dea” - “either a god or a goddess.”

Myths about the creation of the world

There was no earth yet. Land, sea and air were so mixed that the earth was not solid, the sea was liquid, and the air was transparent. And over this formless mass reigned a careless deity named Chaos, and no one knew what it looked like, since there was no light yet. Chaos shared the throne with his wife, the dark goddess of the night named Nyx, whose black robes and even blacker visage could not disperse the surrounding darkness.
Time passed, and the couple got tired of power and called their son Erebus (Darkness) to their aid. The first thing he did was overthrow his father and take his throne, and then, deciding that he needed a companion, he married his mother Nyx. Erebus and Nyx ruled together until their wonderful children Ether (Light) and Hemera (Day), united, overthrew them and usurped power over the world.
And then for the first time the illuminated Chaos revealed its entire unsightly essence. Ether and Hemera carefully examined the chaos that reigned everywhere and, seeing the possibilities inherent in it, decided to turn it into a beautiful thing. However, they well understood the enormity of the task set for themselves and felt that they could not cope alone, and therefore called on Eros (Love), their own child, for help. With their combined efforts they created Pontus (the sea) and Gaia (Earth, Ge, or Terra), as the earth was then called.
At the beginning of its existence, the Earth was not at all as beautiful as it has become now. There were no trees covered with thick foliage shaking their branches on the hills, no flowers growing in the valleys, no grass in the meadows, no birds flying in the air. The ground was bare; Silence and peace reigned everywhere. Eros was the first to notice this and, grabbing his life-giving arrows, launched them into the cold chest of the earth. And immediately its brown surface was covered with luxurious greenery, colorful birds fluttered out of the leaves of the trees, a wide variety of animals appeared in the dense meadows, and fast fish flashed in the clear waters of the streams. Life, joy and movement reigned everywhere.

Gaia, waking up from sleep, admired everything that Eros did to decorate her, and, deciding to complete and crown his works, she created Uranus (Sky).

Helpers of Jupiter

Jupiter had his own assistants, among whom was Victory, or Nike, ready at any moment to fulfill his slightest desire, and it is said that Jupiter loved her so much that he always kept her image at hand.
The standing-tongued goddess of glory, Fama, depicted with a trumpet in her hand, proclaimed whatever he wanted at his request, never questioning whether it was true or not.
Sometimes Fortuna, the goddess of fortune, was depicted next to Jupiter, who travels the world on a constantly rotating wheel, scattering her countless gifts with a careless hand and indifferently distributing her most merciful smiles. Another assistant of Zeus, Hebe (wife of Hercules), the goddess of youth, was always ready, at his command, to pour nectar into the cups of the gods, which they drank, making toasts in each other’s name.
But one day this beautiful goddess stumbled and fell and was deprived of her post. The father of the gods had to look for a replacement for her.
He took the form of an eagle and flew over the earth. But before he could fly far, he saw a young man of amazing beauty on a nearby hill. Zeus immediately rushed down, grabbed the young man with his strong claws and carried him to Olympus, and here the kidnapped Ganymede, the son of the king of Troy, was instructed in detail about the duties that he had to perform in the future.

Birth of Minerva

Although the gods were immortal, they suffered from physical pain in the same way as mere mortals. One day, Jupiter had a terrible headache, and, hoping that the gods could tell him how to get rid of the pain, he gathered all the ancient Greek gods on Olympus. But joint efforts to alleviate the suffering of Jupiter did not lead to anything, even the advice of Apollo, the god of medicine, turned out to be useless. Not wanting, or perhaps no longer able to endure this hellish pain, Jupiter asked one of his sons, Vulcan, to cut his head with an ax. The obedient god obeyed with alacrity, but before he had time to strike with the ax, Minerva appeared from the head of Jupiter - in her full height, dressed in sparkling armor, with a sharp spear, singing a triumphant song of victory.
The gods gathered on Olympus trembled in fear of this unexpected guest, and at the same time a strong whirlwind swept over the sea and over the land, announcing the appearance of the great goddess.
The goddess, who joined the inhabitants of Olympus, was destined to become the patroness of peace, defensive wars and women's handicrafts, the embodiment of wisdom and drive away the gloomy deity called Stupidity, which had previously ruled the world. Minerva, having banished her unattractive predecessor, quickly grabbed the scepter and immediately began to rule in her place.

Fall of Vulcan

Vulcan was once strongly attached to his mother (Juno), showed her his love in every possible way and even tried to console her when she suffered from Jupiter’s neglect. One day, deciding to punish Juno for another attack of jealousy, Jupiter chained her to a golden chain and hung her from the sky. But Vulcan, noticing this, pulled her back in, and was about to free her from the chains, when Jupiter returned and, angry that he had interfered in the affairs of his parents, cast him out of the sky.
The space between heaven and earth was so vast that Vulcan fell all day and all night until he finally found himself on Mount Mosihl, on the island of Lemnos.
Of course, for any mortal this fall would have meant certain death, and even Vulcan did not emerge from it unscathed. He broke his leg and from then on began to limp, remaining crippled for life.
And although Vulcan risked and suffered cruelly to save his mother, she made no attempt to find out whether he landed alive or was broken in the fall. Offended by her indifference and ingratitude, Vulcan swore that he would never return to Olympus, and settled alone in Mount Etna, where, together with the Cyclops, he established a huge forge to make many cunning, useful things from the metal that was found in abundance in the bowels of the earth.
Vulcan made himself two golden maids who supported him wherever he went.
Vulcan also created a golden throne with countless secret springs. When no one was sitting on it, it seemed like an ordinary chair, but as soon as someone sat down in it, the springs began to move, and the throne locked the person sitting on it. The unfortunate man could neither get up nor get rid of the embrace of this golden monster.
Having completed its creation, Vulcan sent it to his mother, who, delighted with its beauty and fine finishing, sat proudly on it and found herself captive. In vain did she try to get up, in vain did all the gods try to snatch her from the embrace of the throne. Their combined efforts and all their tricks turned out to be completely useless.
Finally, Mercury was sent to Vulcan, who most diplomatically asked him to honor Olympus with his high presence, but eloquence
The persuasiveness of Mercury could not force the god of fire to leave his smoky home. The messenger of the gods was forced to return back and report the failure of his mission. Then the gods consulted and decided to send Bacchus, hoping that his method of persuasion would be more successful.
Taking with him a flask of his best wine, Bacchus appeared before Vulcan and invited him to refresh himself. Vulcan, who was constantly thirsty from the heat, accepted the offered cup and drank until he was completely drunk. In this state, Bacchus brought him to Olympus, forced him to release the queen of heaven and ordered him to hug his father and ask for forgiveness.
And although Vulcan managed to regain the favor of the gods, he did not live on Olympus, but preferred to return to his forge and continue working.

The Palatine is considered the main one among the main seven hills of Rome, since it was on this site that the Eternal City arose. Legends say that two twin boys were suckled here by a she-wolf, one of whom, Romulus, became the founder of Rome and the first Roman king. Traces of buildings from the 8th century BC were found on the hill, dating back to the era of the first urban settlements.

View from Palatine Hill

I would like to believe that archaeologists on the Palatine discovered traces of a hut where Romulus once lived. Although there is no direct evidence of this, experts indirectly confirm this possibility. But be that as it may, the territory of the Palatine began to be populated earlier than other Roman hills. And this is a fact!

Legends and myths

There are several versions of the origin of the name of the hill. The most acceptable is considered to be the veneration of the deity Pales, the patron saint of shepherds, by the ancient peoples. It is interesting that according to some sources, Pales was perceived as a god, and according to others, as a goddess. In ancient times, on the Palatine there were shepherds' huts, ordinary pastures and religious buildings where rituals and sacrifices were performed. It is noteworthy that in many languages the word "palace" is associated with the word "Palatine". In particular, in the Middle Ages, royal houses in Russia were called chambers. Maybe they were associated with the luxurious imperial palaces that were once erected on the hill?

An interesting myth is associated with the hut of Romulus, the legendary founder of Rome. The adobe structure itself with a thatched roof, carefully preserved and restored over several centuries, burned to the ground under the first Roman emperor Octavian Augustus. The place where the house could have stood was discovered during excavations in the middle of the last century through holes in the tuff intended for the installation of support posts. The position of the “traces” relative to the hill and the placement of load-bearing supports in the plan, typical of Latin huts, led archaeologists to believe that the found artifacts belong to the dwelling of Romulus.

Artifacts found during excavations on Palatine Hill

Another legend says that at the foot of the Palatine there was a cave where the she-wolf suckled Romulus and Remus. A fig tree grew nearby and a spring flowed. During excavations nine years ago, archaeologists discovered Lupercal. The grotto is decorated with simple mosaics and marble. It is assumed that this is the very cave of the she-wolf (lupa), although there are opinions that the Romans here worshiped not her, but a deity, one of whose names is pronounced Luperc. Translated, it sounds like “protector from wolves.” In his honor, the so-called Lupercalia were held once a year.

Stucco on the houses of the residents of the Palatine Hill

Surviving bas-reliefs of the Palatine Hill

Another legend of the Palatine is associated with the Caca staircase (Scale di Caco or Scalae Caci). It tells of the victory of Hercules over the ugly, fire-breathing son of Hephaestus (Vulcan). While Hercules was sleeping on the banks of the Tiber, Kakhi stole his cows and hid them. But the mythological hero was not only able to find the loss, but also fought the giant, killing him and destroying the freak’s cave. The Kaka staircase is most likely located in the very place where the events could have taken place. You can find it between the House of Livia and the supposed hut of Romulus.

Do you think that's all? Of course not. They say that thorns grew on the Palatine for a long time in the place where the spear of the founder of Rome, the legendary Romulus, pierced. He threw it when choosing a place to found a new city from another hill - the Aventine - with such force that no one was able to pull out the weapon. It went too deep into the ground. The spear took root, as a result of which a thorn appeared, which became confirmation that the Eternal City was to be! And we see it!

In the vastness of the Palatine Hill

History of the Palatine

Placing a settlement on the Palatine was advantageous from a strategic point of view. In those days, people were forced to choose territories that were maximally protected from strangers. There was only one approach to the top of the Palatine along a gentle slope, and the rest of its sides were steep. Surrounding the hill, moreover, there were swamps that prevented a sudden attack by enemies. This location made it possible to defend easily, and the presence of the Tiber nearby made it possible to supply Rome with water until aqueducts appeared.

Steep slopes of the Palatine Hill today

Romulus outlined the boundaries of the future city. Later the Palatine was surrounded by a wall in which a gate was placed:

Roman - led to Via Nova;
Mugonskie - connected to Via Sacra;
another, whose name is unknown, connected the Palatine with the Circus Maximus near the Staircase of Caca.

During the Republican period, the Palatine turned into a prestigious area, which began to be inhabited by generals and orators known to the Romans, statesmen and writers. Their houses were decorated luxuriously, with special sophistication.
During the Empire, the hill turned into an imperial residence with luxurious palaces, a kind of elite center.
Today, the Palatine is a cluster of partially preserved archaeological sites - former luxurious Domus. Among them, the most modest building can be called the home of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. By the way, he did not choose the Palatine as his place of residence. According to some historians, in particular Suetonius, Octavian was born here. He became the founder of imperial residences, being the first to build a palace on a hill.

In the Middle Ages, the Palatine was used as a quarry. Luxurious buildings were partially or completely destroyed. Stones found their use in the construction of castles and basilicas, the construction of tombs and statues.
By the mid-19th century, the hill had become a collection of ruins overgrown with dense vegetation. Only the Farnese Gardens and Villa Mils have survived here, about which little is known.

Modern tourists can see the remains of the imperial palaces thanks to the efforts of Napoleon III, who in 1861 acquired the northern section of the hill from Francis II, the King of Naples. The French emperor made a lot of efforts to obtain permission from the Roman authorities to conduct excavations. But since 1870, the Italians were able to return the Palatine to their possessions.

Artifacts found during excavations on Palatine Hill

About Roman mythology

The most ancient objects of religious veneration among the Romans were spirits - the patrons of the family, whose cult is older than the city of Rome itself. The Romans themselves believed that the veneration of these spirits came to Rome from Lavinium and Alba Longa, the more ancient cities of Italy. Such patron spirits include manas - the shadows of the dead, protecting their family after death, household deities penates and lares. Penates, Lares and Manes did not have their own names, were not personified and were revered by the Romans as a kind of nameless multitude. They will be discussed in more detail in the relevant sections.

Roman rites were just as stingy and formal. The veneration of the gods was reduced to performing clearly regulated actions and pronouncing legal formulas. The most terrible thing was the deviation from the verified ritual, which promised divine punishment. In his prayers, the Roman listed in detail what he wanted to receive from God and what he was ready to give him in return. Often such punctuality in relationships came down to the art of deceiving God so as not to give him anything extra, for example, instead of how many heads (of cattle), the Roman offered God the same number of heads of garlic and put himself in the calculations with higher powers.

The ancient Roman religion, dry and practical, turned out to be very susceptible to the influence of the Greeks with their vivid poetic myths and complex relationships between the gods, each of which had its own history and distinct character. The earliest influence on the Romans came through the Greek colonies on the west coast of Italy: Cumae and Naples. Then the god Apollo and Hercules, a deified hero, who, by virtue of consonance, united with the Roman Hercules and became first the national patron of war, and then of trade, came to the Romans.

The Greeks had a serious influence on the Roman religion even after the subjugation of the Greek colonies in Southern Italy to Rome; this influence increased even more after the conquest of Greece itself in the 2nd century BC. e. Gradually, the Romans adopted the rich Greek mythology and transferred it to their gods. This is how the syncretic Greco-Roman pantheon emerged, and the believers themselves ceased to distinguish between the origins of the gods.

The Roman poet Ennius writes about the twelve main gods of Ancient Rome, in many ways similar to the ancient Greek Olympian pantheon. Together these deities formed the council of Jupiter and were responsible for maintaining world order. Here they are:

Jupiter (Zeus among the Greeks) is the god of the sky, thunder and lightning, the father of the gods, the supreme deity of the Roman pantheon;

Neptune (Poseidon among the Greeks) is the god of the seas;

Vulcan (among the Greeks Hephaestus) is the god of fire and blacksmithing;

Apollo - god of light, sciences and arts;

Mercury (Hermes among the Greeks) is the god of trade;

Mars (Greeks Ares) - god of war;

Juno (among the Greeks Hera) - goddess of marriage, wife of Jupiter;

Minerva (Athena among the Greeks) is the goddess of wisdom and crafts;

Ceres (Demeter among the Greeks) is the goddess of fertility;

Venus (Aphrodite among the Greeks) is the goddess of love and beauty;

Vesta (Hestia among the Greeks) is the goddess of the family hearth;

Diana (Greeks Artemis) is the goddess of the hunt.

They were called dii consentes, advisory gods. Subsequently, eight more gods were added to them: Janus, Saturn (for the Greeks Kronos), Genius, Pluto (for the Greeks Hades), Liber the Father, Earth, Sun and Moon. Collectively they were called dii magni, the great gods. There were also a huge number of different dii minores, minor gods.

Most of the Roman myths about the great and lesser gods are identical to the Greek ones. We do not see the need to retell them in this book and recommend that the interested reader turn to works on Greek mythology for them. Our goal in this chapter is to acquaint the reader with specific Roman beliefs and myths that have no analogues among the Greeks, as well as the characteristic features of Roman religious holidays and superstitions.

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The origin of ancient mythology To complete the presentation of the issue, let us briefly compare the myths about the origin of the world among the Greeks and in the Jewish Torah. The first book of Deuteronomy “Genesis” begins algorithmically similar to the Greek creation (the latter is given by us in the subchapter

Everyone is somehow accustomed to combining the mythology of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. It seems that what else can be found among the Romans, who only knew how to give new names to foreign gods? Zeus - Jupiter, Hera - Juno, Ares - Mars, Aphrodite - Venus, just remember, and that's the end of it!

But this is just the tip of the iceberg, and you can try to dive deeper.

Who told?

It is extremely difficult to judge the most ancient period of Roman mythology, because scientists have to rely on much later sources.

However, the priestly books “Indigita-menti” are quite famous. Official records of the life of ancient Roman communities, records of ancient Greek authors in response to events in Hesperia (as they called ancient Italy), hymns of the colleges of the Arval brothers, etc. have been preserved.

The main sources are considered to be the first treaties of Rome with other cities and states, records of the college of pontiffs (priests), as well as records of the main events of each year, which later became known as the annals (Latin annus - year).

However, the main sources are considered to be Virgil's Aeneid, Livy's history books, Ovid's Fasti and the fourth book of Propertius.

Cosmogony and gods

For a long time it was believed that Roman mythology in its initial stages of development was reduced to animism. The worship of the souls of the dead was due to fear of their supernatural power, as was the worship of animate natural phenomena. The Romans never began or finished anything without securing the favor of the gods, without performing all the required rituals, without offering prayers and making the necessary sacrifices.

It was believed that the Romans distinguished only favorable or unfavorable non-personified forces - numina (numina), and there were a great many of them: the deity of sowing and growth, flowering and marriage, harvest and conception, walking and returning, etc., and their names were formed from the name of the action being performed.

Moreover, it was also believed that even the few personal gods that arose later did not have an anthropomorphic embodiment, but only symbols: for example, Jupiter is a stone, Mars is a spear, Vesta is fire.

In the primitive communal period, the cult of ancestors, honored in every clan, was of great importance: the Penates, the patrons of the hearth and clan, and the Lares, the patrons of the home, family and the entire community as a whole.

However, although the ancient cosmogony of the Romans still remains a mystery, researchers gradually began to find evidence that Roman mythology itself went through approximately the same stages of development as other peoples during the primitive communal period.

The most ancient triad of deities was identified: Jupiter (who supplanted the original creator of the world, Janus) is the embodiment of religiosity and priesthood, Mars is the military hypostasis, Quirin is the economic hypostasis.

Janus and Vesta guarded the doors and the family hearth, the Lares protected the field and the house, Palaeus the pastures, Saturn the crops, Ceres the growth of cereals, Pomona the tree fruits, and Kone and Opa the harvest.

In addition, according to the conclusions of scientists, the Romans believed that people as a family trace their origins to sacred trees, oaks, and therefore groves were dedicated to each numina deity, where rituals were performed and sacrifices were made, and the trees themselves played a very important role in life states. For example, sacrifices were made to the oak tree on the Capitoline Hill, and the withering of any fig tree, the tree under which, according to legend, the she-wolf fed the future founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus, was perceived as an extremely formidable and unfavorable sign.

Since the cult of animals was very developed, the interpretation of their behavior and the study of the sacrifices made, or, more simply, fortune-telling, so widespread in Ancient Rome, became of great importance.

Justified...by the state

What is the uniqueness of Roman mythology in comparison with other mythological traditions?

If you think about it, it becomes obvious: most of the ancient myths about the gods did not survive; they were gradually but steadily replaced by myths about heroes.

The very structure of Roman society, in which individual communities sought to unite into large urban conglomerates, in which politics played an increasingly greater role with each century, and the state became an intermediary between the citizen and the gods - this is the originality of Ancient Rome.

Myths telling about heroes are a reflection of the deep mutual penetration of history and myth in the minds of the Romans. A person’s life is filled with the divine presence, every moment of it a person is responsible for his actions.

And if they are performed for the benefit of the community, then the gods are pleased with you.

Such are the myths about the Sabine women, Numa Pompilius, Lucretia, Scaevola, Coriolanus and many others.

Of course, it cannot be denied that Roman culture constantly absorbed the culture of the peoples around it. Yes, the Romans renamed and adopted almost the entire Greek pantheon, made many borrowings from the Etruscans and other peoples, but there was a very simple reason for this. Rome was a military state, which, through conquests, constantly expanded its territories and assimilated the culture of the conquered peoples.

Roman heroic myth explained the past, justified the present, and guided the future. Despite some initial primitiveness, he made a person’s life filled with meaning: service to the fatherland.

And what is the end?

The Roman religion, open and constantly changing under external influences, simply could not develop a single concept about the end of the world.

Like any military state, Rome was doomed to gradual decline and destruction or to inevitable transformation. Roman mythology, having gone through various stages of development - from the adoption of the Greek pantheon to the formation of the cult of the emperor, eventually became... a kind of basis for the victory of Christianity as a religion.

The myth of the Roman left-hander

In 509 BC. e. The Etruscan king Lare Porsenna declared war on Rome. A huge army invaded the country and was getting closer and closer to the capital. A little more - and Rome would have been taken by storm.

Then one of the young Roman patricians, Gaius Mucius Cordus, decided to infiltrate the Etruscan camp and kill their king. Guy knew the Etruscan language and, dressed in the clothes of enemies, easily entered the camp, but he could not understand which of those sitting at the main tent was King Porsenna. He could not ask, for fear of giving himself away.

Then the young man decided that the most elegantly dressed person was the enemy ruler. He attacked him and stabbed him with a dagger. But alas! It turned out to be just one of the king’s courtiers, the greatest lover of outfits and decorations.

Gaius Mucius was immediately captured, but refused to answer questions. Then they began to threaten him with torture. Seeing a tripod with a blazing fire, the young man himself approached it, put his right hand in the flame and silently, without making a sound, looked at Porsenna until his hand was charred.

Amazed by the courage and incredible stamina of the patrician, Porsenna exclaimed: “If all the Romans are so persistent, then it is impossible to defeat them.” He released Mucius, who from then on began to bear the nickname Scaevola (Left-handed), and decided to begin negotiations on a truce.