. The grandeur that was Rome; a survey of Roman culture and civilisation:. thedead were carefully buried whole, often folded up into asitting posture to fit their contracted graves. Then comesan Early Iron period, an Umbrian culture called TheVillanova, where the cremated ashes of the dead are collectedin urns and deposited in vaults generally walled with flat slabsof stone. Above these two stages come Etruscan and Gallicremains and then those of the Rome of history. It is probableenough that the Iron Age of the Villanova culture repre-14 INTRODUCTION sents a conquest from the north. It is Hke
. The grandeur that was Rome; a survey of Roman culture and civilisation:. thedead were carefully buried whole, often folded up into asitting posture to fit their contracted graves. Then comesan Early Iron period, an Umbrian culture called TheVillanova, where the cremated ashes of the dead are collectedin urns and deposited in vaults generally walled with flat slabsof stone. Above these two stages come Etruscan and Gallicremains and then those of the Rome of history. It is probableenough that the Iron Age of the Villanova culture repre-14 INTRODUCTION sents a conquest from the north. It is Hkely that in pre-historic times Italy experienced the same fate as throughoutthe ages of history. The Alpine passes are easier fromnorth to south than in the reverse direction, and the smilingplains of North Italy have always possessed an irresistibleattraction for the barbarian who looks down upon themfrom those barren snow-clad heights. Whether the invaderbe an Umbrian or Gaulish or Gothic or Austrian warrior,Italia must pay the price for her fatal gift of beauty. 15 I. THE BEGINNINGS OF ROME arx aeternae dominationis. Tacitus. HAT Rome was not built in a dayis the only thing we really knowabout the origin of Rome. Thereis, however, nothing to preventus from guessing. The modernhistorian of the Economic Schoolwould picture to us a limitedcompany of primeval men ofbusiness roaming about the worlduntil they found a spot in thecentre of the Mediterranean, aconvenient depot alike for Spanish copper and Syrian frankin-cense, handy for commerce with the Etruscans of the north,the Sicilian Greeks of the south, and the Carthaginians of theAfrican coast. They select a piece of rising ground on thebanks of the river Tiber, about fifteen miles from its mouth, aspot safe and convenient for their cargo-boats, and there theybuild an Exchange, found a Chamber of Commerce (whichthey quaintly term sena(us), and institute that form of publicinsurance which is known as an army. Thus equippedthey
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