The bronze statue of a she-wolf that has symbolised Rome for centuries is to star in a new exhibition amid a dispute over whether the figure really is almost as old as the city itself.
The bronze statue of the wolf who famously suckled Romulus, the mythical founder of Rome, and his brother Remus has been displayed on the Capitoline hill for years.
According to the legend, Romulus founded Rome on seven hills near the River Tiber in 753 BC.
The museum, along with most guide books, claims the statue was made not long after that date by the Etruscans, an ancient people who provided the first kings of Rome.
But last month a leading art expert who restored the statue in 2000 published a book saying the wolf was actually cast in medieval times.
The expert, Anna Maria Carruba, won the weighty support of Rome's former cultural superintendant Adriano La Regina, who said the bronze wolf had always seemed "out of keeping" with what was known about art in Etruscan times.
Two conferences were held at Rome's La Sapienza university recently to allow scholars to discuss the matter at length.
"Most scholars agreed that, both for stylistic and technical reasons, it cannot be placed in the medieval period," said museum director Anna Mura Sommella as she announced the new exhibition this week.
"It was agreed, and this is also my opinion, that the statue dates back to the 5th century BC."
The controversial wolf statue is to be moved from its current room in the Capitoline museum, where it stands on a high pedestal, and put in another room at a much lower level.
That way everyone can have a good look and form their own opinion, officials said, adding that the wolf would be in the more viewable position from April.
The row over Rome's iconic she-wolf looks set to run and run. One newspaper has suggested that the restorer's views had been hushed up so the capital could hold on to its well-loved story.
After the four-year restoration, Carruba said the wolf could not have been made in ancient times because it was cast in one go.
The one-cast technique of forging was invented by medieval sculptors who enjoyed an edge over their supremely skilled but unlucky predecessors, who were hampered by metal impurities, she explained.
Ancient statues, unless they were tiny, were cast in bits and pieced together with lamina-like 'glue' to appear seamless, she noted.
