The Roman Forum

[Love Cruis'n]

While in Rome I plan to visit the old Roman Forum area. I’ve seen photos of folks walking about, and I’d like to do that.

 

Is there any specified “entrance” area, if so, where is it? Also, is there any admission fee required? Again, if so, about how much?

 

(Note: we toured the Coliseum in 2007, and have no plans to return there – just the Forum which time did not allow us to visit back then.)

 

Thanks,

Terry

[euro cruiser]

Here is the official tourism site for the City of Rome: http://en.turismoroma.it/roma_ti_accoglie/in_giro_per_musei/foro_romano

 

The entrance fee for the Forum is 9 Euro, and the hours are at the bottom of the page.

[Love Cruis'n]

:)Thanks.:)

[cruisemom42]

I really love the ancient Foro Romano. I suggest you bring some kind of guide or podcast with you as it can be somewhat confusing. It has such a high density of temples and monuments relative to its small area. Some don't miss spots (among many others):

 

• Temple of Caesar: The spot where Julius Caesar's funeral and cremation took place (later a temple). Every time I have visited, there have been flowers placed on the spot. I've read it's still the thing to do on the ides of March, when you'll see heaps of them. (By the way, Caesar was not actually murdered in the Forum. The Senate was meeting in a different location at the time.
  
• The Senate building (Curia) -- one of the best preserved buildings on the site. The brick building was destroyed and rebuilt several times. This third version was started by Julius Caesar and finished by Augustus. If you're lucky, the doors will be open and you can go inside and picture the senators in their togas, sitting on their small portable stools on the risers. (These risers possibly coined the still-used nickname of "backbenchers" by the way.....) Note the beautiful marble floors; the original bronze doors were removed and reused in a church where they can still be seen (St John Lateran). http://www.raceandhistory.com/Europe/images/curia.jpg
  
• The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina -- The front of the temple is more well preserved than most because it was later incorporated into a church (built behind it). Note the inscription: Faustina, the wife of the emperor Antoninus died first, so he had this temple built for her (Romans tended to make their emperors into gods after they died -- IF they were good!). Note that her name comes first. When he later died, his name was added at the bottom. Nice recycling. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.planetware.com/i/photo/temple-of-antoninus-and-faustina-rome-i729.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.planetware.com/picture/rome-temple-of-antoninus-and-faustina-i-i729.htm&h=500&w=375&sz=244&tbnid=hI_V37FvhZFkrM:&tbnh=259&tbnw=194&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtemple%2Bof%2Bantoninus%2Band%2Bfaustina&hl=en&usg=__CKhaPDGV5ISom03-GZKZGmzBX0E=&sa=X&ei=F48PTJKtDIGC8gb2tezzCA&ved=0CAsQ9QEwAA
  
• The Basilica of Maxentius -- The partial remains of this huge pinky-red brick basilica are still imposing. Romans pioneered the building of these huge basilicas as places of business and gathering, not as places of worship (as we now usually consider them). There are other basilicas in the Forum as well. http://www.tesoridiroma.net/galleria/foro_romano/foto/basilica_massenzio_06.jpg
  
• Via Sacra -- the wide street that passes through the Forum; the path of almost every sacred and triumphal procession. Take a moment to comtemplate the fact that you are walking along the same path. http://www.tropicalisland.de/italy/rome/forum_romanum/images/FCO%20Rome%20-%20Roman%20Forum%20Romanum%20-%20Via%20Sacra%203008x2000.jpg
  
• Arches -- there are several arches in and around the Forum. The Arch of Septimius Severus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arch_of_Septimius_Severus The Arch of Titus is well worth a look; its panels tell the story of the sack of Jerusalem by Titus, who later became emeror. It is said that the gold and jewels he sacked from Jerusalem largely financed the Colosseum next door: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arch_of_Titus The carving is very fine, especially when compared with the later Arch of Constantine (between the Forum and the Colosseum), which was constructed in part out of recycled pieces from other triumphal arches.
  
• Some of the best sites cannot be accessed from the Forum itself. If you go in the Capitoline Museum, in the room where the large equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius is located, the huge blocks in the enclosing wall are actually the foundations of the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus ("Jupiter Best and Greatest"), Rome's chief god. Around the back of the building, you'll find a great view of the Forum from the area that used to be the Tabularium -- the place where all of the tablets on which the laws were inscribed were kept.
  

[CathyCruises]

And the statue of Marcus Aurelius is magnificent. . .along with the other ginormous sculptures at the Capitoline. We went to this museum on the advice of Cruisemom and just loved it--we talk about it all the time.

[Seabee]

What is not so nice are the Michelin Tire man statues someone has placed throughout the Forum. What were they thinking???:eek: How can one take a 2000 year old area and decide to place modern art amongst the classics?

 

Or am I the only one who noticed?