94 Interesting Facts about Rome | FactRetriever.com
Few cities can rival Rome's astonishing influence on the world. Journey into the past with our interesting Rome facts to explore its influence, beauty, & power.
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From bizarre emperors to shocking events, these facts reveal a side of Rome most people never learn. Some linguistic possibilities for the origin of the word “Rome” include the Etruscan word rhome, meaning “strength” or “river.” It may also be related to the root rum meaning “teat,” referring to the wolf that suckled the twins Romulus and Remus. Another theory is that Roma was the daughter of Aeneas, a mythical founder of Rome.[10] Because there were apparently few women in early Rome, Romulus (c. 771-717 B.C.) kidnapped neighboring Sabine women. Most of the girls were prizes of whoever got them first, while a few of the more beautiful ones were brought to leading senators by special gangs.[8] Rome has a sovereign state located entirely in its city limits, the Vatican City, which is also the world’s smallest state.[10] Nero’s reign had many memorable moments, including killing his mother Agrippina and his wife Octavia. When he died, he said, “What an artist I die!” (“Qualis artifex pereo!”).[3] Several religious sources claim that Nero was the Antichrist and will return as the Antichrist. Some scholars claim that the numbers 666 in the biblical Book of Revelation is a code for Nero.[7] Some ancient Romans placed a phallic symbol over a door as a symbol of good luck and fertility, and miniature phalluses were often worn as lucky charms.[10] Cappuccino is named after the Roman order of monks, the Capuchin, who wore a hood or cappucio The Capuchin Crypt in Rome consists of five chapels and a corridor 60 meters long—and it is decorated with the bones of 4,000 deceased monks. The coffee drink Cappuccino takes its name from this order of monks who were known by their custom of wearing a hood or cappuccio with their habits.[9] The abbreviation SPQR can be found on many Roman statues, buildings, and military standards. It stands for “senatus populusque romanus.” meaning “The senate and people of Rome.”[1] Rome’s population of more than a million was not matched by any other European city until London finally overtook it in the nineteenth century.[3] Roman physicians had a wide range of surgical tools, including catheters and speculums. Many modern medical terms still have Latin roots. The knee cap, for example, is the patella, which is Latin for “shallow dish.”[10] In English, to “decimate” means to completely destroy. The word comes from the Latin decimare, which evolved from the practice of killing every tenth Roman soldier if they tried to mutiny.[1] The first-ever shopping mall was built by the Emperor Trajan in Rome. It consisted of several levels and more than 150 outlets that sold everything ranging from food and spices to clothes.[10] With nearly 3,000 years of rich history, Rome is often called the “Eternal City.” Though Rome dates back to possibly 625 B.C., the oldest continuously populated city in the world is widely to be considered Byblos in present-day Lebanon dating back to 5000 B.C.[10] Rome is the city of echoes, the city of illusions, and the city of yearning. - Giotto di Bondone The snake was a common image in Roman art and jewelry and was believed to have powers over a family’s well-being.[2] Emperor Claudius’ third wife was once said to have donned blond wigs, gilded her nipples, and entered a competition with a local prostitute to see who could bed the most men in one night. Claudius had her executed.[8] Togas were unique to Rome and were worn by free-born Roman men as a mark of distinction. Ironically, the only women who wore togas were prostitutes because they were not allowed to wear stolas, the traditional garment of Roman women.[10] Purple, the most expensive dye from Murex seashells,...