The Forum Holitorium ( it, Foro Olitorio; en, Vegetable-sellers' Market) is an archaeological area of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Italy, on the slopes of the

Capitoline Hill The Capitolium or Capitoline Hill ( ; it, Campidoglio ; la, Mons Capitolinus ), between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The hill was earlier known as ''Mons Saturnius'', dedicated to the god Saturn. ...

. It was "oddly located" outside the Porta Carmentalis in the

Campus Martius The Campus Martius (Latin for the "Field of Mars", Italian ''Campo Marzio'') was a publicly owned area of ancient Rome about in extent. In the Middle Ages, it was the most populous area of Rome. The IV rione of Rome, Campo Marzio, which cov ...

, crowded between the

Forum Boarium The Forum Boarium (, it, Foro Boario) was the cattle ''forum venalium'' of ancient Rome. It was located on a level piece of land near the Tiber between the Capitoline, the Palatine and Aventine hills. As the site of the original docks of Ro ...

("Cattle Market") and buildings located in the

Circus Flaminius The Circus Flaminius was a large, circular area in ancient Rome, located in the southern end of the Campus Martius near the Tiber River. It contained a small race-track used for obscure games, and various other buildings and monuments. It was "bui ...

.
In ancient times it was the fruit and vegetable market, while the area of the adjacent Forum Boarium served as meat market. It also included a sacred area with three small temples dedicated to

Janus In ancient Roman religion and myth, Janus ( ; la, Ianvs ) is the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings. He is usually depicted as having two faces. The month of January is named for Janu ...

, Spes and Juno Sospita.

The sacred area

The construction of the sacred area of the forum dates back to the

Republican age Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or again ...

, more precisely to the period between the first and the

second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Ital ...

. Subsequently, at the time of

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...

( 1st century BC), it underwent renovations which involved the demolition of a fourth temple: it was built by Manius Acilius Glabrio (

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states th ...

191 BC __NOTOC__ Year 191 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Nasica and Glabrio (or, less frequently, year 563 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 191 BC for this year has been u ...

) next to the Temple of Janus and was demolished during the construction of the Theatre of Marcellus (then completed by

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...

). The temple was dedicated to the worship of

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997) ...

. The staircases of the three temples were not aligned, which confirms the absence of uniform town-planning criteria during the Republican age. Their construction delimited the area of the market, which previously should have extended up to the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the Ri ...

.
These temples are now part of the structure of the Basilica of San Nicola in Carcere, whose earliest historical news date back to the 11th century in the ''

Liber Pontificalis The ''Liber Pontificalis'' (Latin for 'pontifical book' or ''Book of the Popes'') is a book of biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the ''Liber Pontificalis'' stopped with Pope Adrian II (86 ...

Temple of Janus

The Temple of Janus was the one located on the right and the closest to the Theatre of Marcellus. Built by Gaius Duilius at the time of the First Punic War, it was restored in AD 17 by

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...

.
It was a peripteros temple ''sine postìcum'' (with columns on three sides), with eight

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock ...

( peperino) columns on the long sides and six on the front (hexastyle), covered with

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

and raised on a low podium with elegant shaping.

Temple of Spes

The Temple of Spes (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

: ''Aedes Spei'') was located on the left, in opposition to the Temple of Janus. It was built by Aulus Atilius Calatinus, at the time of the First Punic War as well; it was restored in 232 BC and rebuilt after the fire of 213 BC, which also destroyed the temples of Sant'Omobono Area;See Livy, XXV, 7.5-6: «

t the beginning of 212 BC T, or t, is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is deri ...

''two commissions of triumvirs were elected '' ..''the second to rebuild the temple of the goddess

Fortuna Fortuna ( la, Fortūna, equivalent to the Greek goddess Tyche) is the goddess of fortune and the personification of luck in Roman religion who, largely thanks to the Late Antique author Boethius, remained popular through the Middle Ages until ...

and that of Mater Matuta, on this side of Porta Carmentalis, as well as the temple of Spes on the other side, all of which had been destroyed by fire in the previous year.''» finally it was restored in AD 17 by Germanicus Julius Caesar.
It was a peripteros doric temple with six columns on the front and eleven on the long side; the columns were made of raw

travertine Travertine ( ) is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and even rusty varieties. It is formed by a pro ...

and covered with stucco to simulate the appearance of marble. It measured in length and in width. Six columns of the temple with their architrave still exist, incorporated in the left side of the church of San Nicola.

Temple of Juno Sospita

The temple of Juno Sospita was located between the temple of Spes and that of Janus: on its ruins, towards the end of the 11th century, the current church was founded.
Built around

195 BC __NOTOC__ Year 195 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Flaccus and Cato (or, less frequently, year 559 '' Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 195 BC for this year has been us ...

by Gaius Cornelius Cethegus, it was a peripteros ionic temple, with six columns on the facade, three rows of columns on the front side and two on the back side. A travertine staircase, the same which is still used today to access the church, led to the

pronaos A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cul ...

of the temple. It was the largest of the three, since it measured in length and in width, as well as the tallest one, as can be seen by comparing the preserved columns of each of the temples. The present structure is due to the restoration commissioned by a certain Caecilia Metella in

90 BC __NOTOC__ Year 90 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Caesar and Lupus (or, less frequently, year 664 ''Ab urbe condita'') and the Third Year of Zhenghe. The denomination 90 ...

. The remains of the temple are the basement, which can be visited inside the church, and three columns incorporated into the facade, one of which has no capital; these columns were still visible in their original state before the facade was rebuilt. Other remains, such as some columns, are visible inside the church.

Notes

External links

*
Forum Holitorium
* {{Monuments of Rome Holitorium Rome R. XII Ripa Archaeological sites in Rome