The Basilica Porcia was the first civil

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

built in

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

. It was built by order of Marcus Porcius Cato in 184 BC as censor and is named after him. He built it as a space for administering laws and for merchants to meet, against some opposition. It stood to the west of the Curia, on land bought by Cato and previously occupied by shops and private houses. Many trials were held inside the basilica. It was destroyed by fire after the body of

Publius Clodius Pulcher Publius Clodius Pulcher ( – 18 January 52 BC) was a Roman politician and demagogue. A noted opponent of Cicero, he was responsible during his plebeian tribunate in 58 BC for a massive expansion of the Roman grain dole as well as Cic ...

was alit on a pyre in the adjoining senate house in 52 BC. The ruins were probably flattened later that year to build a new building on the site.

Bibliography

*Filippo Coarelli, ''Guida archeologica di Roma'', Verona, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, 1984. Roman Forum Porcia 180s BC establishments 2nd-century BC establishments in Italy 2nd-century BC establishments in the Roman Republic {{ancientRome-struct-stub