Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tours:
Anunexcitingyetinformative
audioguide
helpsdeciphertherubble(€5/2hours,
€7 version includes Palatine Hill and lasts 3 hours, must leave ID), but you'll have to return
it to one of the Forum entrances instead of being able to exit directly to Capitoline Hill or
theColosseum.Official
guidedtours
inEnglishmightbeavailable(inquireatticketoffice).
You can download this walk as a free Rick Steves
audio tour
(see
here
).
With Limited Time:
Walk from the Arch of Titus to the Arch of Septimius Severus.
Don't miss the Basilica of Constantine hiding behind the trees.
Services:
WCs are at the main entrance and in the middle of the Forum, near #8 on the
map.
Plan Ahead:
The ancient paving at the Forum is uneven; wear sturdy shoes. I carry a
water bottle and refill it at the Forum's public drinking fountains.
•
Start at the Arch of Titus (Arco di Tito). It's the white triumphal arch that rises above the
rubbleontheeastendoftheForum(closesttotheColosseum).Standattheviewpointalong-
side the arch and gaze over the valley known as the Forum.
Arch of Titus (Arco di Tito):
The Arch of Titus commemorated the Roman victory
over the province of Judaea (Israel) in
A.D.
70. The Romans had a reputation as benevolent
conquerors who tolerated the local customs and rulers. All they required was allegiance to
the empire, shown by worshipping the emperor as a god. No problem for most conquered
people, who already had half a dozen gods on their prayer lists anyway. But Israelites be-
lieved in only one god, and it wasn't the emperor. Israel revolted. After a short but bitter
war, the Romans defeated the rebels, took Jerusalem, destroyed their temple (leaving only
the foundation wall—today's revered “Wailing Wall”), and brought home 50,000 Jewish
slaves...who were forced to build this arch (and the Colosseum).
• Walk down the Via Sacra into the Forum. After about 50 yards, turn right and follow a
path uphill to the three huge arches of the...
Basilica of Constantine (a.k.a. Basilica Maxentius):
Yes, these are big arches. But
they represent only one-third of the original Basilica of Constantine, a mammoth hall of
justice. The arches were matched by a similar set along the Via Sacra side (only a few squat
brickpiersremain).Betweenthemranthecentralhall,whichwasspannedbyaroof130feet
high—about 55 feet higher than the side arches you see. (The stub of brick you see sticking
up began an arch that once spanned the central hall.) The hall itself was as long as a football
field,lavishlyfurnishedwithcolorfulinlaidmarble,agildedbronzeceiling,andstatues,and
filled with strolling Romans. At the far (west) end was an enormous marble statue of Em-
peror Constantine on a throne. (Pieces of this statue, including a hand the size of a man, are
on display in Rome's Capitoline Museums.)
The basilica was begun by the emperor Maxentius, but after he was trounced in battle,
the victor Constantine completed the massive building. No doubt about it, the Romans built
