Today we are going to locate ourselves in the Roman Forum, the political, civic and religious center of ancient Rome for a period of more than a thousand years. To the right of the main entrance, northwest of the Via Sacra, we are going to meet first with the Aemilia Basilica and, just behind, with the Julia Curia, the place where senators met during the time of the republic.
This Rome monument It was built in 44 BC and bears this name because it was built by Julius Caesar (although a similar building already existed in the past, but it was destroyed by fire). It was the Senate Chamber, capable of holding up to two hundred senators. It still preserves much of the original decoration, although the bronze doors were removed in the XNUMXth century to be placed on the facade of the Basilica of San Juan de Letrán.
Possibly we are before best preserved building of the Roman Forum. It has a rectangular ground plan, 27 meters long, 18 meters wide and a little over fifteen meters high. In front of the façade there was a portico of Ionic columns dedicated to the goddess Minerva and which gave way to the bronze doors.
The Curia Julia that we can see today corresponds to the restorations carried out by Diocletian at the end of the XNUMXrd century. The mosaics on the floor are from this period, with tiles of different sizes and colors forming drawings. This mosaic is found in the only room inside, where on both sides the three steps on which the wooden seats for the senators were placed can still be seen.
A set that has managed to remain as it is thanks to its conversion into Church of San Adrián in the XNUMXth century. Enter this site and it will give you the feeling of being a recent monument. It doesn't seem like it has twenty centuries of history at all.
More information - Roman Forum in Rome, Basilica of St. John Lateran
Image - Stephen Danko