The Roman Forum, located between the Capitoline and Palatine hills in the centre of Rome, was the main focus of the Roman Republic and later the symbolic heart of an empire that stretched from England to Carthage. The religious and political institutions, law courts, shops and markets would have bustled with life, and the temples and imperial monuments were architectural triumphs. Fire, invasions and general decay have have all detracted from its former glories and in 1932 the Italian fascist dictator Mussolini ordered a main road to be built straight through the site. Among the best-preserved monuments are the triumphal Arch of Septimius, eight columns of the Temple of Saturn and the rectangular House of the Vestal Virgins.
Air: Rome Leonardo da Vinci Airport (Fiumicino), Rome Ciampino Airport. Water: Ferry: Civitavecchia port, from where there are services to central Rome. Rail: Train: Roma Termini Station or Roma Tiburtina Station. Underground: Colosseo. Road: Bus: Public services to Piazza del Colosseo or Via dei Fori Imperiali. Car: A12 (from the west); A24 (from the east); SS7 (from Rome Ciampino Airport).

Foro Romano, Piazza Santa Maria Nova 53, 00186 Rome, Italy
Tel: (06) 699 0110
Website: www.archeorm.arti.beniculturali.it

Italy, Rome