Roman Forum

The Roman Forum

The Rome audio-guided tour takes you back in time to the Roman Forum, the political, religious, economic and judicial heart of ancient Rome.

The heart of ancient Rome

Around the tenth century before our era, the place was only a marshy valley serving as a necropolis for the villages of the surrounding hills. Around 600 before Jesus Christ, the Romans, masters of water management, drained the area thanks to an immense sewer, the Cloaca Maxima, in order to lay out the main square of the city. Inspired by the Greek agora, the Forum became the living centre of Rome: one finds there the vestiges of the curia, seat of the Senate, but also of temples, basilicas, statues and commemorative monuments. A true city within the city, it gathered thousands of people. The ruins belong to different eras, spread over the millennium that ancient Rome lasted, from the Monarchy to the Republic then to the Empire. To wander here is to walk in the very heart of Roman history.

What there is to see

The Roman Forum deploys an extraordinary ensemble of ruins: temples, basilicas, arches and vestiges of the curia, spread over a thousand years of history. One wanders there in the heart of ancient Rome, where the fate of the Empire was decided. It is one of the most fascinating archaeological sites in the world, to explore step by step.

Practical information

The Roman Forum is in the heart of ancient Rome, between the Capitoline and the Palatine. The visit is generally subject to a charge, often associated with the Palatine and the Colosseum in a combined access, according to hours to be checked on site.

What was the Roman Forum?

The main square and the political, religious and economic centre of ancient Rome, inspired by the Greek agora.

How was the Forum built on a marsh?

Thanks to the Cloaca Maxima, an immense sewer that drained the marshy valley around 600 before Jesus Christ.