ROMAN FORUM
The valley of the Forum among the seven hills of Rome was once a swamp. From the end of the 7th century B.C., after the swampland was reclaimed, the Roman Forum was created in the valley, which was the center of Roman public life for over a millennium.
Over the centuries, various monuments were built: initially buildings for political, religious, and commercial activities, then during the 2nd century B.C., civil basilicas where judicial activities took place.
By the end of the Republican age, the ancient Roman Forum was already insufficient and inadequate to function as the administrative and representative center of the city. The various imperial dynasties only added prestigious monuments: the Temple of Vespasian and Titus and that of Antoninus Pius and Faustina dedicated to the memory of the deified emperors, the monumental Arch of Septimius Severus, built at the western end of the square in 203 A.D. to celebrate the emperor’s victories over the Parthians.
The last major intervention was carried out by Emperor Maxentius in the early 4th century A.D. Maxentius built the Temple dedicated to the memory of his son Romulus and the imposing Basilica on the Velia, which was renovated at the end of the 4th century A.D. The last monument erected in the Forum was the Column raised in 608 A.D. in honor of the Byzantine emperor Phocas.
PALATINE HILL
According to ancient tradition, the first settlement of the city of Rome stood on the Palatine, founded by Romulus around the middle of the 8th century B.C. Excavations have uncovered remains of huts and tombs from the Iron Age and recently the oldest fortification, dating back to the 8th century B.C.
Home to important city cults, including that of Magna Mater (Cybele), between the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C., the hill became the residential district of the Roman aristocracy. This period includes the House of the Griffins, famous for its paintings. Here are the private houses of Augustus and Livia.
Emperor Augustus made the Palatine the official seat of power and began the construction of the imperial palaces, later renovated and expanded by his successors. The area of the Palace of the Caesars houses the Palatine Museum, where the grave goods from the Iron Age tombs and works from the emperors’ residences are exhibited, including the paintings of the Aula Isiaca.
Tickets:
Ticket offices: Largo Salara Vecchia and Via di S. Gregorio, 30
Colosseum/Palatine/Roman Forum: single ticket
Full price € 12.00
Reduced € 7.50 for European Union citizens between 18 and 24 years old and for European Union teachers;
Free: visitors under 18 years old from the EU.
*Entrance:
Opening time: 8.30
Closing time:
Autumn/Winter
from the last Sunday of October to February 15: last entry 15.30 with exit 16.30;
from February 16 to March 15: last entry 16.00 with exit 17.00;
from March 16 to the last Saturday of March: last entry 16.30 with exit 17.30
Spring/Summer
from the last Sunday of March to August 31: last entry 18.15 with exit 19.15;
from September 1 to September 30: last entry 18.00 with exit 19.00;
from October 1 to the last Saturday of October: last entry 17.30 with exit 18.30
Closed on January 1, May 1, and December 25
House of Augustus – House of Livia
Open to the public every day, with controlled entries, for groups of 20 people with their own guide or with a guide from the Coopculture company. The visit must be booked through the Coopculture company which manages the information and booking service on behalf of this Superintendence by phone at (+39) 06 39967700 (Monday to Friday from 9.00 to 18.00; Saturday from 9.00 to 14.00) or on the website www.coopculture.it.
Severan Arcades on the Palatine
Open to the public on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays according to the following schedule:
from February 16 to March 15: from 8.30 to 16.30
from March 16 to the last Saturday of March: from 8.30 to 17.00
from the last Sunday of March to August 31: from 8.30 to 18.45
from September 1 to September 30: from 8.30 to 18.30
from October 1 to the last Saturday of October: from 8.30 to 18.00
from the last Sunday of October to February 15: from 8.30 to 16.00
House of the Vestals
Temple of Venus and Rome
Palatine Museum
are open every day but are similarly closed 30 minutes before the archaeological area closes.
Please note that in extraordinary situations of reduced staff, it may happen that the area remains closed on days that are scheduled to be open
Accessibility
Access to the Roman Forum area can be made:
• from the entrance at Largo della Salaria Vecchia no. 6, along Via dei Fori Imperiali,
with an elevator to overcome the difference in level of about 6.50 meters between street level and the Roman Forum.
• from the elevator located near the Arch of Titus.
Suitable restroom facilities are available.
info 06. 699841
