A ( ) was a food market in Ancient

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

during the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

and

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

. These mercantile fora were extensions of the

Roman Forum A forum (Latin: ''forum'', "public place outdoors", : ''fora''; English : either ''fora'' or ''forums'') was a public square in a municipium, or any civitas, of Ancient Rome reserved primarily for the vending of goods; i.e., a marketplace, alon ...

and contained numerous buildings and monuments erected under the Republic and the Empire. In his ''Politics'',

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

proposed that a city should have both a ''free'' square in which "no mechanic or farmer or anyone else like that may be admitted unless summoned by the authorities" and a marketplace "where buying and selling are done... in a separate place, conveniently situated for all goods sent up from the sea and brought in from the country." The Roman Forum was originally used for athletic games and trading purposes of all kinds; however, the forum became a political and banking center where bankers and brokers had their offices. The (judicial) and (mercantile) came into existence under the empire because of the growth of the city and the increase in provincial business. Maenius, one of the Censors, was chiefly instrumental in bringing about these changes. The smaller that specialized by type of produce were started along the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; ; ) is the List of rivers of Italy, 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 R ...

, near Port Tibernius, with the Suarium at the foot of the Quirinal Hill towards the Campus Martius. The Boarium Forum for cattle, Forum Cuppedinis for

delicatessen A delicatessen or deli is a grocery that sells a selection of fine, exotic, or foreign prepared foods. Delicatessens originated in Germany (contemporary spelling: ) during the 18th century and spread to the United States in the mid-19th centur ...

, Forum Holitorium (cabbage market) for vegetables, Forum Suarium for pork, Forum Piscarium for fish, Pistorium Forum for bread, and Forum Vinarium for wine. The Roman Forum, and the Fora of Caesar and

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

were .

References

External links

* * {{AncientRome-struct-stub