Forum page 3

My Roman Holiday

Forum page 3

Temples of Saturn and Concord

The columns on the left are from the Temple of Saturn, one of the first temples to be built in the Forum. It served as the Roman state treasury and was an essential stop whenever a general celebrated a triumph in the Forum. Saturn was an ancient god of the Italians, and the festival dedicated to him took place in late December, at which time Romans decorated their houses and exchanged gifts. It wasn't a great leap to turn this festival into our Christmas. The Temple of Concord on the right was built later.

Rostra

The speakers' platform, from which Roman orators spoke to the people assembled in the Comitia, was also moved by Caesar when he built a new Curia. In 338 B.C. the Roman legions captured the pirate port of Antium (Anzio) in southern Latium (Lazio) and brought back the prows (rostra) of the pirates' ships to mount on the speakers' platform, which was from that point called the Rostra (not rostrum).

Forum with Arch of Septimius Severus in Foreground

The Forum, as seen from the Tabularium. In the foreground is the Arch of Septimius Severus, completed in A.D. 203. In the rear, see the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina, now the porch of a Christian church. After the fall of the western empire, this area fell into disuse, and the ground level rose almost 30 feet. During the Middle Ages this was a cow pasture. Not until the 18th century did archeologists begin to dig down and expose the ruins you see today.

Let's climb up to Capitoline Hill