File:Rhea_Silvia_by_Jacopo_della_Quercia_-_Santa_Maria_della_Scalla_(from_Fonte_Gaia)_-_Siena_2016.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Key facts
- Abode
- Tiber
- Parents
- Numitor (in Livy's account)
- Consort
- Mars , Tiberinus
- Children
- Romulus and Remus
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Part of
- Roman mythology
- Gender
- female
- Citizenship
- Alba Longa
- Place of birth
- Alba Longa
- Spouse
- Tiberinus
- Child
- Romulus and Remus
- Father
- Numitor
- Position held
- Vestal Virgin
- Image
- Rhea Silvia by Jacopo della Quercia - Santa Maria della Scalla (from Fonte Gaia) - Siena 2016.jpg
Show 7 more facts
- name in native language
- Rhea Silvia
- date of death
- 0800-00-00
- time period
- ancient history
- Commons category
- Rhea Silvia
- unmarried partner
- Mars
- described by source
- Pauly–Wissowa
- different from
- Rheasilvia
Sources (3)
via Wikidata · CC0
~7 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Rhea (or Rea) Silvia ( Latin: [ˈreːa ˈsɪɫu̯ia]), also known as Ilia, (as well as other names) was the mythical mother of the twins Romulus and Remus, who founded the city of Rome. Rhea was a Vestal Virgin who became pregnant with the twins after being impregnated by the god Mars; after giving birth, they were taken from her and raised by a she-wolf.
These events were frequently portrayed in Roman art and literature. Her story is documented by Livy in the first book of his Ab Urbe Condita Libri, and in Cassius Dio's Roman History. It is additionally mentioned in the Aeneid and in the works of Ovid.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Rhea Silvia” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.