In 70-75 AD. at the end of the civil wars for the succession to the Empire and the bloody repression of the Jewish revolt, the Emperor Vespasian built a sanctuary dedicated to Peace called the Forum of Peace consisting of a large square with porticoes.
The complex became part of the five Imperial Forums, the third in chronological order after the Forums of Caesar (46 BC) and Augustus (2 BC) and before those of Nerva (97 AD) and Trajan (112- 113 AD). It differed profoundly from these complexes in terms of its functions. The Imperial Forums were in fact mainly places of administration of justice, actual courts, as well as locations of libraries and legal archives. The Forum of Peace was instead characterized by a rich collection of sculptures and paintings which, together with a famous literary and scientific library (Bibliotheca Pacis), made it a sort of cultural center and a container of the works of human creativity.
In this complex you could admire the Menorah brought back by the Roman soldiers after the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem in 70 AD by Tito, as depicted on his Arch of Triumph. In a room, the Forma Urbis Romae was also preserved, the famous large marble plan of Ancient Rome (12×18 metres) of which some fragments remain preserved in its museum recently inaugurated on the Celian hill. The wall on which the map was affixed corresponds to today’s facade of the Basilica of Saints Cosma and Damian where you can still see the holes left by removing the map metal clamps.
Basilica of Saints Cosma and Damian
Photo by #maurizioromeguide #romeprivatetours #rometravelguide #visiteprivateroma #ancientrome #romanarchitecture #visitrome #travel #visitlazio #culture #rome #visititaly #romeguide #romanhistory #historylovers #romekidtours #rometourguide #visiteguidatescuoleroma #fororomano #spqr
Maurizio Rome Guide 