Surviving literary accounts of the beginnings of Rome are based entirely on legend. The stories provide evidence of what the Romans at various times thought about their own origins and how they liked to see themselves. The developed version of the story contained two main legends, those of Aeneas and Romulus, which were artificially combined at an unknown date (but certainly before 300 BC). Although both legends are very ancient, they are, as far as we can tell, quite unhistorical, although certain incidental details (e.g. the idea that Romulus founded his settlement on Rome's Palatine hill) are consistent with the archaeological facts.
The archaeological evidence now available shows that one or more villages were established on the hills of Rome (including the Palatine) from the end of...
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