THE ROMAN FORUM MAIN FEATURES

In contrast to the images above showing the western side of the Roman Forum, the next image shows the eastern side of this forum in the year 100 AD. This is the central square area of the Roman Forum with a long, white marble building, the Basilica Julia, on the right side of the square and another long building, the Basilica Aemilia, on the left. If you hover your cursor or touch the screen, you can see labels for the buildings.

Having been built in the 170s BC, both the Basilica Aemilia and the Basilica Julia were large buildings with venues for commercial activities. However, the Basilica Julia was more geared towards administrative and judicial proceedings (trials) held in the various halls and rooms. This building was started by Julius Caesar in 56 BC and finished by his nephew Emperor Augustus. It had to be reconstructed several times after fires in 9, 199, 283 and 410 AD.

From the west side looking eastwards - 100 AD
Touch image or use cursor to see identifying lables
Remaster based on black & white image by © Digitales-Forum-Romanum

The Roman Forum extends much further east beyond the square than shown in the image. It extends back towards the Colosseum seen in the background behind the Temple of the Divine Julius. The Curia Julia Roman Senate building is seen at the far left. And the Temple of the Divine Julius, where Julius Caesar was cremated, is located in the centre of the image. On the right side of this temple is the white Arch of Augustus which is also shown after the next photo.

At the very bottom of the image is the Rostra Augusti speakers platform where Roman leaders stood to address the crowds. The word "rostrum" come from this structure.

If you look closely at the front of the Basilica Julia on the right, you can see stairs leading up into the basilica. These stairs have survived, and the photo below shows how they look in the 21st century.

Basilica Julia in the year 2004 AD - the stairs survived
Image courtesy of Penn State Univ Library Architecutre

Below is the Arch of Augustus, which is shown how it looked in the past and then in the 21st century. This triple-arched gateway was the first of its kind and it was located between the Temple of the Divine Julius and the Temple of Castor and Pollux. Other Roman arches, such as the the Arch of Septimius Severus, were all based on this structure made of three arches. The great street of ancient Rome, the Via Sacra, passed through the large, middle arch. Unfortunately, except for the foundation, nothing remains of the Arch of Augustus.

On the right upper side of each image above, you can see a high palace called the House of Tiberius & Caligula, the ruins of which still exist and are quite prominent. Today, you can stand on top of this ancient palace and look down at the Roman Forum. This palace was built by Emperor Augustus' stepson and heir, Tiberius, but he died before it was built. However, the infamous Emperor Caligula lived there, as did Emperor Nero - for a while until his Golden Palace was completed. Through the middle arch, you can see a rounded temple with columns - this is the Temple of Vesta, where the Vestal Virgins and Vesta's Sacred Fire were located.

The Temple of Castor and Pollux is shown in the images above. This temple was named for mythological twin half-brothers who had the same mother, but different fathers (one human, the other the god Zeus). The image of the temple in Roman times shows gilded bronze statues of Castor and his brother with their horses on either side of the stairs. Those statues have vanished, but two other sets of the same statues have been found in Rome. One set is part of a fountain, and the other (shown below), stands on the Capitoline Hill.

Castor and Pollux, known also as the "Dioscuri", were excellent horsemen and brothers to Helen of Troy. They are also the twins in the constellation Gemini. This temple and what it represents was important to the people of Rome because of an event that happened in 500 BC. At that time, the early Roman Republic was threatened by its former King and his allies, who they had to fight in a terrible battle at Lake Regillus.

Legend says that, after Castor and Pollux appeared on the battlefield on horseback, the forces of the Republic won the battle. Afterwards, the twin brothers reappeared in Rome where they were seen watering their horses. In gratitude, the Romans built a temple dedicated to them because the twin deities now had a reputation for helping in a war crisis. Unfortunately, this temple was destroyed by fire in 14 BC, but it was rebuilt by Emperor Tiberius in 6 AD, which forms the ruins we see today.

Statues of Castor & Pollux in Piazza Campidoglio
Image courtesy of Jeff Bernhard - CC BY 2.0

The photo above shows the magnificent statues of the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux standing on either side of the entrance to the beautiful Piazza Compidoglio on top of the Palantine Hill. I always assumed these statues were the original ones from the Temple of Castor and Pollux in the Roman Forum. However, thanks to Jeff Bondono, I now realize that these statues, though likely very similar, are from another temple to Castor and Pollux near the Circus Flaminus, southeast of the Roman Forum.

These statues are huge, and the ones from the important and ancient Roman Forum temple must have been as large or even larger. This gives you an idea of the scale of the temple. Just imagine statues like those on either side of the wide temple staircase. Perhaps these statues were made of gilded bronze, which would explain why they vanished - they were melted down.

The story of the statues in the photo is very interesting. While constructing a Ghetto for Jewish people in Rome in the 1560s, large pieces of the statues were found that matched with other pieces found years before. In 1582, artists pieced the parts together, replaced parts that were missing, and now these huge statues stand at the entrance to the Piazza Compidoglio on top of the Capitoline Hill. This piazza and its beautiful geometric square were designed by Michelangelo in the 1500s. Incredibly, there is another ancient set of these statues that are part of a fountain in front of the Quirinal Palace (Palazzo del Quirinale) in Rome, where the Italian President resides.

In 283 AD, a catastrophic fire raged through this forum. It caused serious damage to many of the buildings and monuments, such as the Basilica Julia, Temple of Saturn and the Curia Julia. Intense fire can make certain types of stone - such as marble - crack and splinter apart. Also, Roman buildings were not 100% made of stone - their roofs and interiors contained much wood.

After the fire, co-Emperors Maximian and Diocletian made many repairs and additions to the Roman Forum over a period of twenty years, ending in 303 AD. The image below shows the same eastern side of the Roman Forum in 310 AD, almost 30 years after the terrible fire of 283 AD and seven years after the repaired forum was officially opened by Emperor Diocletian when he visited Rome in 303 AD.

Besides repairing and replacing buildings, an additional "rostra" was added to the square's east side. Also, many tall columns of pinkish-red stone, probably Aswan Pink Granite, topped with purple statues and resting upon white pedestals, were constructed. These are known as "Honorary Columns or "Honorary Monuments."  The columns were 11 metres (36 feet) tall, and the statues above the columns were life-size. The purpose of these columns was to honour both Roman Emperors and gods.

Once again, you can see the Basilica Julia on the right with the Basilica Aemilia facing it. These two buildings were adorned with many statues and were considered amongst the city's most beautiful structures.

In the foreground, the Rostra Augusti, has changed - the platform now supports five columns with statues on top which can be seen in this ancient stone relief dating from the early 4th century (you can see the top of the columns behind the people). The "Augusti" refers to Emperor Augustus, who made changes to this speakers platform in 44 BC. This is also where Marc Antony stood to give his famous speech after the assassination of Julius Caesar. Part of the Rostra Augusti has survived (click to view).

On the opposite side of the square, you can see the newly added rostra. It was called the Rostra Diocletiani, honouring Emperor Diocletian, and it was built in the early 300s AD.

In front of the Basilica Julia, a major street, called the Via Sacra, led straight up to the Colosseum; it was used for parades and ceremonies. Another street, Via Argiletum can be seen on the left side, between the Curia Julia and the Basilica Aemilia. This is where cobblers and booksellers were established before the Forum of Nerva absorbed most of the street.

In the distance, you can see the huge Colosseum; and, standing just before it is the Temple of Venus and Roma, the largest temple in Rome built by Emperor Hadrian. In front and just left of this large temple is the Basilica of Maxentius, the largest building (basilica) in the forum, which I explore further down.

On the far right, bottom, is part of the Temple of Saturn, with the Temple of Castor and Pollux (upper right) at the other end of the Basilica Julia.

Basilica Julia with Temple of Saturn on the right  after 310 AD
Original image credit Gilbert Gorksi - modified by myself.

The image above shows the Basilica Julia in 310 AD which, by this point, had been rebuilt for the third time by Emperor Diocletian in 303 AD. There is a really good view of the seven Honorific Columns in front of the Basilica Julia and the statues located under each arch.

On the far left, you can see another five Honorific Columns standing on a newly built rostra called the Rostra Diocletiani - it was a copy of the ancient Rostra Augusti on the far right, which also had 5 columns with statues on top. They obviously added another rostra for reasons of archaeological symmetry at the price of making the whole public square smaller. Also added by 310 AD are seven very prominent Honorific Columns which are all standing in front of the Basilica Julia.

Initially, the image above by talented artist Gilbert Gorski showed a massive column atop a step pyramid on the far right side of the square - but I had to remove it because that column was not built until the year 608 AD, which was 132 years after the Western Roman Empire ended.

That famous column still exists today and is called the Column of Phocas. If you would still like to see it, touch the image or move your cursor over it and that column will pop in. He may have included the column because there are suggestions that perhaps, in the very same spot (which happens to align with Via Argiletum street), there was an older column topped by a statue of Diocletian with no step-pyramid below.

Basilica Julia again with Temple of Castor & Pollux on the left
Original image credit Gilbert Gorksi - modified by myself.

Most images of the Basilica Julia in this section show purple-coloured statues on top of the columns. These particular statues are purple because they are made of a costly and very hard stone called Imperial Porphyry, a reddish-purple stone much prized by the Romans. The word "porphyry" comes from "porphyra," the Greek word for purple. In Roman times, this rare and prized stone was found in only one quarry deep in the eastern desert of Egypt.

None of the Roman Forum's porphyry statues have survived, but other Roman porphyry statues still exist. Below is an image of two Roman porphyry statues that were once part of the Forum of Trajan. Notice how the head and hands are made of white marble - this was done because it was easier to create fine detail for the face and hands by using a softer stone. Carving fine detail in porphry is very difficult and time-consuming, especially for the Romans who did not have the kinds of tools we have today.

Also, a dark, purple porphry statue with lighter-coloured face and hands formed a pleasing contrast that made the statue more natural-looking. Another surviving example is the porphyry statue of Emperor Trajan that can still be seen inside the Curia Julia.

Unfortunately, the marble head and limbs of that statue did not survive - most probably because they were made of soft marble that was burned in the Middle Ages to make lime for mortar. Another link will take you to a photo of a famous 100% porphyry statue of the Four Tetrarchs who governed the Roman empire together in the early fourth century AD. The most famous of them was the emperor Diocletian.

Roman Porphyry Statues originally from Forum of Trajan now in the Boboli Gardens, Florence.
Image courtesy of Dimitris Kamaras

In the image below, we see the Basilica Aemilia again, and it has an impressive white marble exterior and many sculptures courtesy of Emperor Augustus, who restored the temple after a fire in 17 BC. Whenever a major building in ancient Rome was damaged by fire or earthquake, the emperor or another rich sponsor would pay for the repairs or rebuilding.

Basilica Aemilia restored and superimposed over a current photo of the Roman Forum

This is what happened to the Basilica Aemilia when it was converted from a large rectangular hall to a building with three long halls (naves) over 100 metres (300 feet) each with stores (tabernae) and meeting rooms. Much commerce and the exchange of money happened in the Basilica Aemelia. In fact, even today, you can see bronze coins that have rusted into the marble floors.

This basilica and the one across the square from it, the Basilica Julia, both suffered terrible damage after they were set on fire in the 410 BC sacking of Rome by the Visigoth Barbarians and their leader, Alaric.

The Basilica Aemilia today in 2018 AD - not much remains

This Basilica, also known as the Basilica Nova, was the last major structure added to the Roman Forum in the early 4th Century AD. This building was begun by Emperor Maxentius and completed by Emperor Constantine. It opened in 312 AD. The next two images show this building as it appeared when new and then how it looks today.

This temple was located on the western side of the Basilica Julia. It was perhaps the oldest temple in Rome having been built around 500 BC. Around 40 BC, the temple had to be rebuilt again. The ruins of the Temple of Saturn that we see in Rome today are from the third rebuilding of this temple in the 300s AD. The usual reason why temples had to be rebuilt was fire.

The Temple of Saturn in the year 360 AD

The image above shows a reconstructed Temple of Saturn that is probably accurate in how it shows a temple that is painted. Roman temples that had columns with painted lower sections and painted areas above the columns were likely the rule rather than the exception. Also, the Romans would often decorate their temples with garlands, hanging textiles, and flowers, especially during festivals honouring their gods.

The image, however, is not entirely accurate because there were eleven columns along the side, and not eight. An accurate model of ancient Rome, called the Plastico di Roma Imperiale clearly shows a Temple of Saturn that is six columns wide and eleven columns long. I have produced a floorplan diagram showing the Temple of Saturn's structure.

The Temple of Saturn today with staircase missing

As shown in the photo above, all that remains of the Temple of Saturn today are eight granite columns from Egypt, a section of entablature above those columns, and the podium foundation - the high staircase is gone. Except for the Ionic capitals, nearly all the other components of this temple were made from recycled parts (such as the columns) from other temples that were used during its last reconstruction.

An inscription in the entablature states the current temple we see was constructed by "SPQR" - "The People and Senate of Rome" (Senatus Populusque Romanus). This temple was dedicated to the Roman god Saturn, a god of wealth, agriculture, and plenty, which is why the original temple was used as Rome's "Fort Knox," known as the "Aerarium."

A large statue of Saturn, possibly made of Ivory, would have stood in the inner temple chamber called the Cella . On December 17th, the merry festival of Saturnalia would occur, and it is from this festival that some aspects of Christmas have been derived, such as gift-giving, singing songs, decorating with greenery, and lights. This festival was considered the merriest of the Roman festivals and even the enslaved people did not have to work. In fact, slave-owners would reverse roles and serve the slaves.

My last look at the Temple of Saturn is from the year 1774. It is an engraving by the Italian artist and architect Giovanni Battista Piranesi. In the image, the artist was standing next to the Arch of Septimius Severus (on the far right) and he was looking straight at the front of the temple. The staircase is completely covered and various newer structures were built in close proximity to the ancient temple.

Temple of Saturn in 1774
Etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi

CAESAR AND THE TEMPLE OF SATURN

There is a very interesting story about Julius Caesar and the Temple of Saturn.

In 49 BC, Caesar was at war with Pompey, and he urgently needed money for his armies. So he headed to the Aeraium treasury located below the Temple of Saturn.

Tribunes, called the "Tribuni aerarii" (treasury officials), told Caesar that the keys to the treasury doors could not be found. A very frustrated and angry Caesar ordered the doors pried open, which caused the Tribunes to make a big fuss. Well, in response, Caesar simply threatened to kill them all, also saying he really didn't enjoy having to say that. Anyhow, he got his money - a lot of money - thirty thousand bars of silver, fifteen thousand bars of gold, and millions of coins.

Caesar then marched off with his armies and achieved victory after victory, bringing great wealth to Rome. It sure seems like letting him take all that money was a good thing. He repaid the "investment" many times over during the next five years of his life before he was assassinated in 44 BC. This story certainly shows how Caesar was a very determined person who would not let a small thing like a door stand in the way to victory.

This concludes my look at the Roman Forum. I hope you enjoyed your experience and learned many interesting things about this grandest of all the Roman forums. Please click the forum guide below if you would like to look at another forum.