1. Foundation Mythology: Virgil’s Aeneid and other examples
By Alex Chase

2. What is a Foundation Myth?
An origin myth that serves to explain the foundation of a city, nation, or civilization.
What are notable/common characteristics of Foundation mythology?
Plurality
Some sort of Journey or travel
Usually a god/goddess/spirit involved
Aeneas flees burning Troy, Federico Barocci, Galleria Borghese, Rome

3. Plurality
Where there are several existing stories for the explaination of the city
Range of myths with alternative versions
Ex: Athenians and whether they were autochthonous(indigenous) or descendants from an Ionian branch of Hellenic genealogy
There’s also Iphigenia's sacrifice
Herodotus has two conflicting stories about the Cyrene foundation
The Aeneid also contains these contradictions and about who actually founded Rome itself

4. A Journey/struggle
A common aspect of a foundation myth usually contains some sort of journey or struggle (though not all the time)
The Aeneid is known for its long trek of Aeneas across the ancient world in search of this new land for him to build upon
He has to deal with other civilizations along the way

5. God or spirit assistance/intervention
Since this is myth a god almost always appears or something mystical must happen
Like in Homer’s epics where the gods would assist warriors in their fights
There’s Zeus’s lovers and children of the gods (demi-gods)
Aeneas is technically a demi-god
There are also the guiding spirits (Hector and Creusa) but more on the Aeneid later

6. Common Foundation Myths
The Myth of Athens (Not the physical building of a city but the creation of a city through patronage)
Right after the creation of the city two gods wanted it (Athena and Poseidon)
Held a competition of gifts
Poseidon- a salt water spring sprung from where his trident struck ground
Athena- an olive tree grown in the center of the city
The olive tree was accepted by the people and Cecrops, their king
Thus Athens truly became Athens once Athena became its patron

7. Europa
A young Phoenician princess, who was a lover of Zeus
As she was in a field, Zeus appeared as a splendid white bull
She got on the bull
He took of for a far away land, where she would rule and bear Zeus many famous offspring. This was the founding of …… EUROPE Io
Another lover of Zeus, this one a princess of Argos
Almost caught by Hera until Zeus turned her into a white heifer (who gave her as a present)
There was a whole ordeal with Hermes eventually cutting off the head of her guard (Argus), freeing Io
Hera of course is mad so she chases Io with a gadfly (manly locations are named after her because of these wanderings like the Ionian Sea and the Bosporus)
Some myths indicate that Egypt was found by Io because that was where her wanderings ended

8. From Troy to Italy: The mythological beginning of Rome
During the sacking of Troy Aeneas knew he had to flee, so he put his father (Anchises) on his shoulder, his household gods on his back, and held his son’s (Ascanius) hand, while his wife followed behind, and went to Mt. Ida
Met by two visions: Hector and Creusa
Hector said he needed to found a new city across the sea, which will be great (Similar prophesy to Poseidon's)
Creusa said he had to go to Hesperia, where happiness and a new kingdom lie but not without much travel
This begins Aeneas epic quest across the Mediterranean, he goes through struggles that are comparable to Odysseus
In short he sails all around the sea to end up in a land called Latium (this is an ancient region of Italy) ruled by King Latinus

9. A New Home
Aeneas arrives upon this foreign land unknown that it was his destination, until he is eating lunch with his son who says “they were eating their table”
After his arrival, war was going to occur within Latium (due to marriage promises and prophecies)
He found allies in the Etruscans and in the old king of Pallanteum (future Rome)
The Aeneid ends with the conclusion of the war due to the death of Virgil but it is safe to say the Aeneas got his new kingdom.

10. Wait, where’s Rome?
The Aeneid ended with the Latium war but because Virgil died, he did not write the conclusion.
However, that isn’t the end of this foundation myth
The founders of Rome where direct descendants of Aeneas through their mother’s father Numitor
Numitor was ruler of Alba Longa, a city of Latium. He got usurped, his male heirs were killed and his daughter (Rhea Silvia) was forced to become a vestal virgin
A big rule of the vestal virgins is you have to remain chaste, she did not and became pregnant (whether the dad was Mars, Hercules, or a random guy)
Thus Romulus and Remus were born

11. Rome Vs. Reme
A servant was ordered to kill these children by the king but he could not so he placed them in a basket and floated them down the river Tiber.
The river protected them and pushed them safely against the shore where they were discovered by Lupa, a she-wolf, who suckled them.
They would eventually find their way into the family of a Shepard, where they would grow up
Remus gets captured and taken before the king, so Romulus incites the local shepherds and gets him back (killing the king in the process)
Instead of becoming the kings, they re-instated their grandfather and planned on creating their own city but argued over where it should be
So they used augury but still couldn’t agree; Romulus decided to begin construction on his hill (the Palatine)
Remus mocked his brother and jumped over the wall, angered Romulus killed him.
Rome was founded on April 21st 753 A.D.

12. Any other Rome Founding Stories?
Of Course!
Other versions include Rome being founded a lot earlier where, when the Trojan survivors reached Latium the men wanted to keep going but the woman were tired
So a woman named Roma led the woman in the burning of the Trojan ships
This eventually became the site of Rome
Another version only changes the origin of the name of Rome, where it was named after Rumon an ancient name for the Tiber

13. Works Cited
Anderson, William Scovil. “Aeneas.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 24 Nov. 2015,
“Foundation Myth.” Foundation Myth - Wiktionary, en.wiktionary.org/wiki/foundation_myth.
Garcia, Brittany. “Romulus and Remus.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, 4 Oct. 2013,
“How Virgil Integrates Myth and History in The Aeneid.” UKEssays, 3 Oct. 2016,
“Io.” Greek Mythology,
Joe, Jimmy. “Aeneid.” Timeless Myths, 31 Mar. 2004,
Mac Sweeney, Naoise. “Foundation Myths in Ancient Societies Dialogues and Discourses.”University of Pennsylvania Press, University of Pennsylvania, 2014,
Mark, Joshua J. “Ancient Rome.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, 2 Sept. 2009,
Parada, Carlos. “Aeneas.” Aeneas - Greek Mythology Link, 1997,
“The Aeneid.” SparkNotes, SparkNotes,