Eroi greci fondatori di città latine

The philological, epigraphic, archaeological and iconographic dossier relating to the foundation myths of the cities of Latium vetus didn’t have the right consideration, compared to the role given to this fundamental theme in others geographical and cultural contexts, in Italy and in the Mediterranean. In fact, the legendary heritage of the Latin world was ‘crushed’ by the dominant Roman and Greek historiography that, until now, has prevented its independent and comprehensive evaluation. On the contrary, an important and coherent dossier of sources reveals the unanimous and early accession of the Latins to the Greek mythological system (with a latent native substrate) for the construction of the foundation stories of their ‘mother cities’: this phenomenon reveals a cultural and political conscious position of the nomen Latinum in the Mediterranean context and, in particular, in dealing with Rome. This paper aims to present and analyse this dossier in historical perspective, evaluating his role in the construction of the identity of the ‘Latin Nation’ and in its internal and external political relations. Furthermore, it will offer some reflections on the role of the founding heroes in cultic system of the Latin cities and their ‘manifestations’ in the religious landscape of the ancient Latium.