Divina Roma - Stories and Legends from the Eternal City

1. The Cursed Tomb of the First King

Who killed Rome’s first king, and where was he buried? When archaeologist Giacomo Boni uncovered the mysterious Lapis Niger — Latin for “Black Stone” — in the Roman Forum in 1899, some believed he had found the cursed place that ancient sources linked to the death of Romulus himself. In this first episode of Divina Roma, we descend beneath the stones of the Forum into a story of kingship, violence, brotherhood, and myth. Was this truly the tomb of Romulus? Or something even stranger? This episode is a narrative adaptation based on historical sources. Some scenes, dialogue, and transitions have been dramatized for storytelling purposes, while remaining grounded in the historical record and the sources listed below. Sources Livy, Ab Urbe Condita, Book I Sextus Pompeius Festus, fragment on the lapis niger in the Comitium Giacomo Boni, excavation reports on the Roman Forum and the Comitium Additional research from the Capitoline Historical Archive and modern scholarship on the Lapis Niger

Divina Roma — Official Trailer

Rome is a city of light. But beneath it… there are shadows. Divina Roma is a cinematic, narrative podcast exploring the most haunting, moving, and unexpected stories from the Eternal City: from ancient legends to modern history, to the present. Written and narrated by filmmaker Livia Alcalde Patanè.