Alongside the objects, stories, myths and religious ideas were exchanged and adopted, and so the same heroes and gods occur among the three different civilisations. The early material culture of Rome and surrounding cities was heavily influenced by the culture of neighbouring people including the Etruscans, who in turn took much inspiration from the Greeks, with whom they traded extensively.

In reality, around the same time – the 8th century BC – a collection of hilltop hamlets steadily grew into an important town because of its strategic location on the river Tiber, an important trade route. At just over 6cm in width, it's possible that this small statuette sat in a household shrine, or lararium. It's believed this ornament was created in Italy around 100 BC to AD 100 over 700 years after the birth of the myth, highlighting the power this myth continued to hold centuries later. Seen here, this bronze figurine (figure 1) shows the wolf suckling Romulus and Remus. Romans strongly identified with this myth and the 'Wolf and Twins' became a powerful symbol throughout the Empire. Although infants, the pair survived on the site that would become Rome, thanks to the kindness from locals, the god Tiberinus and most famously, care from a she-wolf who provided shelter and milk for the youngsters. The myth states a threatened local King ordered Romulus, and his twin brother Remus, to be abandoned on the bank of the river Tiber. According to legend, Rome was founded in 753 BC by Romulus, son of the Roman god of war, Mars.

Vallum germanicus