The Topography and Monuments of Ancient Rome cropped again

The Velabrum () is the low valley in the city of

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, ...

that connects the Forum with the

Forum Boarium The Forum Boarium (, ) was the cattle market or '' 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 Rome () ...

, and the

Capitoline Hill The Capitolium or Capitoline Hill ( ; ; ), between the Roman Forum, 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 (mythology), Saturn. The wo ...

with the western slope of the

Palatine Hill The Palatine Hill (; Classical Latin: ''Palatium''; Neo-Latin: ''Collis/Mons Palatinus''; ), which relative to the seven hills of Rome is the centremost, is one of the most ancient parts of the city; it has been called "the first nucleus of the ...

. The outer boundaries of the area are not themselves clear. Roman etymologies of the name are confused, with attempts to connect it to the Latin words (conveyance) and (cloth): Varro, Propertius, and Tibullus claimed that it was the location of a ferry; Plutarch, however, claimed the name derived from the awnings placed over the

Circus Maximus The Circus Maximus (Latin for "largest circus"; Italian language, Italian: ''Circo Massimo'') is an ancient Roman chariot racing, chariot-racing stadium and mass entertainment venue in Rome, Italy. In the valley between the Aventine Hill, Avent ...

during games. The name may also translate to "place of mud". It was believed that before the construction of the Cloaca Maxima, which probably follows the course of an ancient stream called ''Spinon'', the area was a swamp, though this claim has been disproven by core samples taken from Velabrum in 1994. Varro claims there are two , one and one , with the smaller emerging from the drainage of a swamp close to the northern side of the Forum: if there was any drainage the distinction between the two was largely forgotten by the last century BC when it was referred to in the plural for both. Ancient authorities state that in this marshy area, the roots of a fig tree ''( Ficus Ruminalis)'' caught and stopped the basket carrying

Romulus and Remus In Roman mythology, Romulus and (, ) are twins in mythology, twin brothers whose story tells of the events that led to the Founding of Rome, founding of the History of Rome, city of Rome and the Roman Kingdom by Romulus, following his frat ...

as it floated along on 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 ...

current. The place therefore has a high symbolic significance. It was also used as a marketplace and a centre of

commerce Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...

, connecting the Palatine with the two major fora. Plautus (''Captivi'' 489) mentions it as a place where oil-sellers were found, and a scholiast (ancient commentator) on Horace (''Satires'' 2.3.229) states: "Velabrum is a place in Rome where everything connected with food and delicacies was on sale." Even after the Cloaca was built, the area was still prone to flooding from the Tiber, until the ground level was raised after the

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

nian fire. Within it were the tomb of Acca Larentia along with a small temple to Felicitas. It is also the site of the Arch of Janus, the Arcus Argentariorum and the church San Giorgio al Velabro.

References

Bibliography

* * {{coord, 41.8892, N, 12.4819, E, source:wikidata, display=title Topography of the ancient city of Rome