Forum Boarium- Rome, Italy - VirtualTourist.com

Down by the Tiber, near the Ponte Palatino, the Piazza della Bocca della Verita occupies the space that, from the earliest days of the Republic, was given over to the city's cattle market - the Forum Boarium. With a port on the Tiber, this and the adjacent Forum Olitorium formed the main commercial centre of the city. It was also an important religious centre, with temples to dedicated to Hercules Victor (not a god, but an important cult figure, especially to the city's merchants) and Portunus (the god of harbors) and an enormous 6th century BC altar dedicated to Hercules. The altar has long since disappeared though the massive statue that adorned it was found in the late 15th century and can be seen today in the Palazzo dei Conservatori. The two temples remain though the Temple of Portunus is hidden under scaffolding at present. The best preserved of all the city's Republican buildings, the tiny round Temple of Hercules Victor is the also oldest surviving marble building in the city.

Another extraordinary survivor here is the Casa dei Crescenzi - a mediaeval fortified tower, built by an influential Roman family in the 11th century. The use of spolia from Roman times is as remarkable as it being one of the very few buildings apart from churches to have survived from this period.

Most visitors who make their way to piazza are heading for the porch of the Church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, where the Bocca della Verita (the Mouth of Truth) has been first a source of superstitious fear and, these days, posey photos for many a long year. The bell tower of the church has been a landmark in this quarter of the city since the 12th century, though the church itself has a much older foundation - it dates back to the 8th century. The Tritons in the fountain in front of the church have been supporting their shells since 1715.

Just off the Forum, the Arch of Janus sits in the area known as the Velabrum, where the road that connected the Forum Boarium to the Roman Forum and the Capitoline Hill to the Palatine crossed. It marks the north-eastern corner of the old cattle market. Ancient records tell us that as well as being a monument, probably to Constantine I, the arch was put to practical use as a shelter for the market's traders.

Forum Boarium, Rome

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Forum Boarium, Rome

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