Top 10 Facts about the Roman Forum

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Top 10 Facts about the Roman Forum

The Roman Forum was once a busy market place, had temples and several striking buildings making it the place where important activities took place in Rome.

This place was the centre of power and grandeur of the Roman Empire. This air about it can still be felt today when one visits the site.

The forum is located in a valley between Capitoline and Palatine Hills on its previous plaza situated at the heart of Rome. This world-famous tourist destination once housed the Senate making it the hub of the Empire.

There are several other attractions in Rome such as old-fashioned piazzas popular hubs of recreation and sightseeing, many of which one can visit. Walking through the forum one can see traces of the unique customs and traditions of its initial occupants.

Let us look at the top 10 Facts about the Roman Forum.

1. Before the Forum was built the land was marshy

The land on which the forum now stands on was not always dry but it was a marshy low-lying wetland between the Capitoline and Palatine Hills. It was not a suitable place to construct habitable buildings or fit to have monuments erected.

The Romans, however, did not want the land to lay in waste and devised ways to make the area suitable to have buildings up.  They figured that once they drained the marsh then they would have habitable land.

The Etruscans who were the first occupants of the land had managed to grain little water. To advance this process the Romans then used a unique technology by constructing a sewerage system, Cloaca Maxima in 600 BC.

This was one of the first sewer lines to ever be constructed in the world. Traces of this great invention can still be seen at Ponte Palatino.

2. Romulus was buried at the site of the forum

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Legend has it that the city of Rome was founded by two brothers, Remus and Romulus who were abandoned at birth and were adopted by a she-wolf. When they were grown, they decided to build a city

A disagreement fell between the two regarding the city and Remus struck and killed his brother.

Romulus was buried in the city and a huge black marble known as Lapis Niger marks where his tomb is.

Historians believe however that the black marble and the tale of the two brothers came about long after the foundation stones of the Roman Forum was laid. They also believe that the shrine marks the site where Romulus was murdered.

3. Severed body parts of defeated political rivals were displayed at the Forum

Displaying of body parts at the Forum was not a strange sight. This was a common practice by the Romans to exhibit mutilated bodies of their enemies in public.

The central Rostra, which was a podium where important speeches and judgements were delivered by orators and magistrates. It was also used as the space to display the body parts of enemies and political rivals.

Other forms of sacrifices were offered to the gods at the forum too.

When Cicero and Mark Anthony struggled for power and Cicero lost, his head and hands were put in full display of the public at the Forum.

4. After the collapse of the Roman Empire, the Ruins of the Forum was turned into a grazing field

The forum served many rules and was the centre of many economic and political events.

Different rulers added structure or renovated the Forum, but after some time the Roman Empire fell and with that, the Forum was abandoned.

The last expansion of the Roman Forum was the construction of the Basilica of Maxentius was done by King Constantine in 312 A.D.

With the change of regimes, Christians took over the Forum and converted the temples into churches. Since the temples were not in good shape, churches were built around the forum and they moved to the new churches.

By the 11th century, the Forum was completely abandoned and was in shambles. Pieces of the forum were taken and used to construct other Roman structures.

Soon it turned into a grazing field and the place was called Campo Vaccino for almost 1000 years before it was discovered in the 18^th and 19^th century.

5. The Temple of Vesta served as the residence of the Vestal Virgins

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As mentioned earlier, the Roman Forum had several structures in it that served different purposes.

The Temple of Vesta at the Forum served as a monastery for young girls aged between 6 to 10 years old. They were chosen from a family with two parents, they also were required to have no physical or mental defect and be from free-born Roman parents.

While at the temple, where they were to spend the rest of their lives, the girls were raised to be priestesses whose duties included keeping the sacred fire of the temple burning.

Other tasks at the temple included fetching water from a sacred spring, preparing food to be used in rituals and taking care of sacred items at the temple.

The fire was important to the Roman Empire as it was believed to bring good fortune. Any of the girls that neglected this duty was found guilty and was punished.

And if any of the girls broke their vow of chastity, they were buried alive as punishment. This vow was to be held for 30-years.

6. Julius Caesar was cremated at the Roman Forum

At the forum, one will find the temple of Caesar, it is also known as Caesar’s grave.   It was built after the unfortunate assassination of the ruler on the steps of the Theatre of Pompey.

The site is said to be where he got cremated in 44 BC, this explains why the site is in ruins. People that visit the site of the cremation lay flowers as a tribute to Rome’s most famous citizen.

His cremation took place publicly with several people in attendance. The mourning crowd threw jewellery, branches, robes and other valuable possessions to honour their fallen hero.

The additional materials that were thrown into the fire, fuelled it that it blew out of control and almost burn the Forum down. The crowd was displeased Mark Anthony’s collaborators that killed Caesar and created a ruckus.

The crowd had a waxed figure of Caesar and paraded it at the Forum to irk his killers.

7. The Roman Forum was the centre of many events

The Forum served as the nerve centre of ancient Rome. It was where special elections were held, gladiator matches held before the colosseum was built, and trials of accused criminals, execution of enemies, thieves and political adversaries.

There were also monuments and statues of leaders that were considered great erected to immortalize them. The temples at the Forum were also constructed to honour their gods. The temples also served as places of worship.

Massive crowds would meet at the forum daily for business or pleasure. There were sellers and buyers of all types; farm produce sellers, masters and slaves sellers, it was a busy market place

As the population of the empire grew, the emperors expanded the Forum by adding more functional and public structures, statues, arches, basilicas among other structures.

8. Most of the marble at the site of the forum got plundered after the fall of the Roman Empire

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Forum fell too and soon it became deserted and a wasteland.

When this happened, some saw the opportunity to pick up pieces of valuables from the Forum to either sell at the black markets or use them in construction of their homes. An extensive portion of the Forum was destroyed and stolen.

The restoration of the ruins started in the 18^th century after the place was rediscovered. The restoration process continues to date.

There is no exact known reason for what led to the fall of the Empire. Historians believe that a series of events over some time led to the fall of the Empire. They believe that corruption, political disputes, religious differences as well as the economy led to the fall.

Some of the marble from the Roman Forum was used to build churches at the Vatican and other Catholic churches in Rome.

9. The Roman forum site has more ancient ruins

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Discoveries at the Roman Forum by archaeologists have been made in the recent past, a sign that the site has more hidden treasures buried within it.

With the rise of new emperors that ruled the Ancient Rome, they made their additions of structures around the Roman Forum, such as the Temple of Vesta, the Temple of Saturn, the Arch of Titus, the Rostra, the Temple of Castor and Pollux, and the Curia, the Senate House. This has created layers upon layers of historical artefacts and other ruins that have been discovered.

In 2009, archaeologists found ceramic remains around a wall that dates back to the 8th or 9th century.

10. Basilica of Maxentius was the largest room at the forum

Last on the list is that the Basilica of Maxentius is the largest structure in the Roman Forum.

This was built by Emperor Maxentius and accomplished by Constantine almost 2,000 years ago. It was the last major expansion done at the Forum.

Visitors of the Forum can see the remains of the north aisle that has three concrete domes with an octagonal ceiling panel.

During the occupation of the Roman Forum, the basilica served as law courts, business complex and government offices.