Seven hills of Rome
The seven hills of Rome east of the river Tiber form the geographical heart of Rome, within the walls of the city.
Hills
The seven hills are:The Vatican Hill lying northwest of the Tiber, the Pincian Hill, lying to the north, the Janiculan Hill, lying to the west, and the Sacred Mount, lying to the northeast, are not counted among the traditional Seven Hills, being outside the boundaries of the most ancient part of Rome.
Separate also are the seven hills associated with the Septimontium, a proto-urban festival celebrated by the residents of the seven communities associated with the hills or peaks of Rome. These were the Oppius, Palatium, Velia, Fagutal, Cermalus, Caelius, and Cispius. These are sometimes confused with the traditional seven hills.
History
holds that Romulus and Remus founded the original city on the Palatine Hill on 21 April 753 BC, and that the seven hills were first occupied by small settlements that were not grouped. The seven hills' denizens began to interact, which began to bond the groups. The city of Rome, thus, came into being as these separate settlements acted as a group, draining the marshy valleys between them and turning them into markets. Later, in the early 4th century BC, the Servian Walls were constructed to protect the seven hills.In modern Rome, five of the seven hills—the Aventine, Caelian, Esquiline, Quirinal, and Viminal Hills—are now the sites of monuments, buildings, and parks. The Capitoline Hill is the location of Rome's city hall, and the Palatine Hill is part of the main archaeological area.
A smaller area was covered by the seven peaks associated with the festival of the Septimontium: the Cispian Hill, Oppian Hill, and Fagutal Hill, three spurs of the Esquiline Hill, along with the Palatium and Cermalus, the peaks of the Palatine Hill, the Velian Hill, a ridge joining the Palatine and Oppian Hills, and the Caelian Hill.