The Forum Gods, goddesses, emperors, festivals, funerals, and marketplaces were all important cultural ideas that the Romans valued. The Forum included all 6 of these ideas, all in different ways.
Built out of concrete (another Roman achievement), the Forum was smack-dab in the centre of the city. The Forum was surrounded by several important, by old governing buildings. .It had many temples, and many were not for honoring gods. Some temples were: the Temple of Saturn; the Temple of Vespasian and Titus; the Temple of Caesar and Pollux; etc. Although having many temples, the Forum also included a plaza, main square, and an arch. In the beginning, the Forum was the centre of public life. The place of celebrating military triumphs, elections, public speeches, criminal trials, gladiatorial matches, banquets, and the place just for the normal hub-bub and gossip. Later, much much later, around the 6th century, Christians started to tear down the various temples, and replaced them with Christian churches. Nowadays, the Forum has attracted tourists from all over the world. |