Roman Forum facts for kids
The Roman Forum is an area of the city of Rome which the ancient city developed around. It is the place where commerce, business, cult, and the administration of justice took place.
It was for centuries the centre of Roman public life. It was the site of triumphal processions and elections; the venue for public speeches, criminal trials, and gladiatorial matches. It was also the heart of commerce. Here statues and monuments mark the city's great men. It has been called the most celebrated meeting place in the world, and in all history.
The Forum is in the small valley between the Palatine and Capitoline Hills. Today it is a sprawling ruin of architectural fragments and excavations. It has 4.5 million sightseers each year.
Buildings in the Forum
The Roman Forum is famous for the number of buildings and other ancient ruins that it contains. These include:
Images for kids
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The Temple of Vesta
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A view of the Roman Forum seen from a window of the Palazzo Senatorio: at the centre the church of Santi Luca e Martina (beside it at the right can be seen the roof of the Curia Julia), at the lower right corner the Arch of Septimius Severus
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Rendering of the Roman Forum as it may have appeared during the Late Empire
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Pope Paul III exploited the ruins of the Forum for the building of St. Peter's Basilica.
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Rome: Ruins of the Forum, Looking Towards the Capitol (1742) by Canaletto, showing the remains of the Temple of Castor and Pollux
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J.M.W. Turner's 1839 Modern Rome – Campo Vaccino (Royal Academy, London)
See also
In Spanish: Foro Romano para niños