A Visit to the Roman Forum

 

No trip to Rome is complete without a visit to the Roman Forum. This open air museum includes the remains of some of the oldest buildings in the city. A visit to the Forum is an excellent chance to explore ancient architecture and also to people watch.

Tradition holds that the Roman Forum was developed as a market and meeting place before 800 BCE, at the end of a war between Romulus, the first king of Rome, who controlled the Palatine Hill, and Titus Tatius, who controlled the Capitoline Hill. The two kings agreed on the creation of a common ground in the valley between the hills. The Forum remained a center of life in Rome for close to 1400 years, as both a market and a home to many of the important temples of ancient Rome. During this time several of those temples were converted into Catholic Churches.

By the 15th century, the buildings of Forum had significantly fallen apart. For 150 years Romans were licensed by the Pope to scavenge in the area for materials to build new houses in the expanding city. In 1540, Pope Paul III withdrew those permissions so that the stones and marble in the Forum can be used exclusively for the creation of Saint Peter’s Cathedral in the Vatican. It wasn’t until 1898 that there was an effort to preserve the Forum, a process which continues to this day.

Assessing the effects of time on the Julia Basilica

My visit to the Forum began with a very early morning wake-up. I was taking a photography class and we headed to the Capitoline Hill to take sunrise pictures from a point overlooking the grounds.

 After the Sun had arisen, we walked back over the Capitoline Museum, through the Piazza deli Campidoglio, to the old Jewish Ghetto for breakfast. We ate at BaGhetto Pastry Bistro Kosher, where they serve excellent pastries and a really good cappuccino. 

Fontana della Dea Roma

 

Teatro di Marcello

 

Memorials to those taken and killed by Nazis during World War II

Our walk continued past the Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II and along the Via deli Fiore Imperiali to the entrance of the museum.

 

Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II

Once inside the Roman Forum I spent my time wandering and observing both the ancient structures and the groups of people who came to see them.  I say groups, because almost everyone there was a part of some tour, walking around with a guide, who, I am sure, explained the history of site in minute detail.

I chose to walk around alone. I was not as interested in the specific histories of the temples. I enjoyed discovering the ways that these artifacts appeared today, how they visually interacted with each other, the surrounding buildings, and the visitors present.

A visit to the Roman Forum may seem trite, and it is certainly “touristy.” But the chance to wander through streets that have existed for more than 2500 years is an experience worth having.

Nuts and Bolts

• BaGhetto Pastry Bistro Kosher is located at Via del Portico d’Ottavio 3. It is open Mon-Thur 7:30AM - midnight, Fri 7:30AM - 4:00PM, Sat 6:00PM - midnight and Sun 9:00AM - midnight.
• The Roman Forum is open from 8:30 AM - 7:15 PM from Mar 30 - Oct 30, It closes earlier during the fall and winter. Last entrance is one hour before closing.
• Tickets are €18 with discounts available for EU citizens between 18 and 25 years old. There are also combo tickets with other museums and the Colosseum available.
• Tickets MUST be booked in advance, and are available from 30 days in advance.