Via Sacra

All roads lead to Rome — or so the saying goes. What is now a way of saying, "There are many ways to get to the same outcome," was once much closer to literal truth.

The idea of empire is so deeply associated with ancient Rome it is sometimes difficult to remember a time before empire, a time when Rome was just one ambitious and expansionist city on a continent of ambitious and expansionist cities.

Nothing tells the story of the rise of Rome, from its mythological founding at the teats of a wolf mother to its glorious empirical heights than its roads — and one road in particular, the Via Sacra, or Sacred Way, may tell the legend best.

Let us begin with those first Romans — the twins Romulus and Remus. After being abandoned in a basket by the Tiber River by their mother, they were suckled by a benevolent she-wolf. There they were found by a kindly shepherd and his wife, who raised them until becoming aware of their origins. It turns out that Mom was a priestess and the daughter of a deposed king of a nearby city. Once the twins figured out their regal connection, they helped their grandfather reclaim his throne, then set out to create a kingdom of their own.

Legend has it that Romulus wanted to found their settlement on the Palatine Hill, whereas Remus preferred the Aventine. The argument boiled over; Romulus murdered his brother and became the first king of Rome. The Palatine it was, then. From that day forward, an address on the Palatine Hill defined fashion, elegance, and power. Today, it is the origin of words such as "palace" and "palatial."

It is unlikely that Romulus and Remus were historical figures, but violence and bloodshed lie at the root of the Roman legend, an appropriate foreshadowing of the Roman legacy. From the time of its founding — often given as 753 BCE — Rome existed in a near-constant state of warfare. Romulus and his descendants fought war after war, securing Rome's place as a regional power in central Italy.

As Rome's power spread, so too did the Forum, a complex of buildings and public spaces that came to be the center of life for Romans of all walks of life. Rich and poor, patrician and plebian, proud and humble, people from every slice of Roman society mingled there. Part outdoor market, part gathering place, the Forum is where court cases were decided, vendors hocked their wares, and business deals were struck. As Rome grew a greater foothold, the Forum grew with it.

Rome's second king, Numa Pompilius, was unusual for a Roman ruler in that he eschewed war for peace. He added the Temple of Janus to the Forum. The Roman god Janus was a deity of transitions. He looked after things such as birth, death, time, and doorways. Numa's temple doors would be opened in times of war and closed in times of peace. He promptly closed the doors, symbolizing that, through his rule, Rome was at peace.

Unfortunately, the doors of Numa's Temple of Janus were flung open by his successor, the war-loving Tullus Hostilius, who returned to expansionism and sent armies back into battle. The doors to the Temple of Janus would remain open for the next 400 years. That's a long time to be at war.

After four centuries of constant warfare, the Romans had dramatically expanded their sphere of influence. Finally, an exhausted populace celebrated as the doors were closed, heralding a new era of peace and prosperity. And there they would stay — closed — signaling peace after 400 years of fighting ... for all of eight years. It would be another two centuries of war — of the doors staying open. The Romans got in a lot of fights.

Although these legendary figures in early Roman history likely didn't exist, the Temple of Janus was real enough and the arc of history works. It is possible the historians invented the early kings of Rome to fit the known chronology. It's not clear how these myths arose, but it is clear that Rome was at war. A lot.

After 250 years of the capricious and unaccountable rule of kings, in 509 BCE the frustrated aristocrats of Rome overthrew the monarchy and instituted a Republic led by a Senate. This did nothing to abate their martial spirit. They fought on.

When visiting Rome, it's hard to remember its rise was not inevitable; the signs of empire and conquest are everywhere, but it took many centuries to forge the empire — year after year, decade after decade, century after century, and war after bloody war. The Roman armies marched off time and time again, extending the influence of the city further and further, bit by bit. Consider that it took nearly 650 years before the Romans comfortably controlled the Italian peninsula. Its rise wasn't spectacular. It was gradual and relentless.

As they conquered, they built roads. Roads made it faster, safer, and more efficient to move armies over the Italian peninsula and gave the Romans a huge military advantage. Rome's most famous road, the Appian Way, was built in 312 BCE to speed the army's route south to suppress their troublesome neighbors.

Each new wave of Roman expansion found another people and more cities reluctant to yield power and privileges to the bellicose city on the Tiber River. Yet, more often than not, the Romans won. Victory brought glory to Rome and to the victorious general. Usually, the Romans simply expected victory. On very rare occasions, they decided to celebrate. A Roman victory parade was called a Triumph. For a Roman general, a Triumph was the highest honor that they could receive.

This celebratory parade was the pinnacle of a career, and spilled over into a massive public festival across the city. For centuries, Roman generals fought abroad in the hopes of being awarded the right to celebrate a Triumph. On the big day, the winning general wore a gold-embroidered purple toga. His face was painted blood red in honor of the chief Roman god, Jupiter. For just a day, the general could look semi-divine and kingly. After the overthrow of the monarchy, the Romans detested even the hint of kingship; to have such aspirations could be a death sentence. The Romans were paradoxically in awe of individual power and repulsed by it, so in order to keep the conquering hero grounded, a slave would ride along in the general's chariot and whisper in his ear a warning: "Remember, thou art but a man." In other words, "Don't get any ideas...."

Part of the Triumphal regalia was a laurel wreath. Depictions of this iconic wreath have come to be one of the most ubiquitous symbols of strength, accomplishment, and victory. Most people have seen the image of the laurel wreath countless times. In this crown lies the origins of the expression, "Don't rest on your laurels," cautioning generals not to over rely on their military conquest or the adulation of the...