A dedicated programme of excavations over the past two decades has revolutionized our understanding of Rome's imperial fora and their surroundings. The monuments themselves are better understood than ever, and the changing character of the quarter which they occupy can be traced over more than three millennia. This monograph offers a synthesis of the area, foregrounding the recent findings while setting them in the context of previous discoveries and evolving debates. It is the fullest treatment yet available, but its comprehensive approach does entail some overlap with other recent publications arising from the same project: particularly R. Meneghini and R. Santangeli Valenzani, I fori imperiali: gli scavi del comune di Roma (2007). At the same time, the pace of ongoing discovery, especially in connection with Metro linea C, means that some of its content is already out of date. Publication might have been better delayed until this work had been completed, and all of the new material could be taken into account.
The volume is divided into three sections, organized chronologically. The first deals with material pre-dating the imperial fora, from the archaic period to the late Republic. The second, and by far the longest, covers the fora and their surroundings, including the so-called ‘Terrazza Domizianea’, the Markets of Trajan, and the area north-west of Trajan's Forum. Finally, the third section traces the changing fortunes of the sector from the end of antiquity to the present day. The discussion throughout is detailed yet accessible, offering a thorough introduction to each monument, as well as meticulous and lavishly-illustrated analyses of the recent findings. This review will highlight Meneghini's presentation of the latest discoveries, but a full treatment of all aspects of this important quarter can be assumed.
Most of the newest findings from the pre-imperial era come from excavations at the southern end of the Forum of Caesar. This area has yielded some additional archaic burials, a tholos of the fourth century b.c., and various domestic structures built over a fire-layer from the first half of the fourth century. Delfino, who has published this material in detail, links the traces of fire to the Gallic sack, but M. restricts himself to reporting the view: no doubt wisely, given the frequency of accidental fires in Rome.
The main excavations in the fora themselves have been published in Meneghini and Santangeli Valenzani (2007), but M. is now able to refine some details. Work in the Forum of Augustus across the northern portico and central plaza found that this area had been largely robbed out after antiquity, but confirmed that this part of the forum was much as expected, complete with the same marble decorations as the rest of the complex. Investigations in the aula of the Templum Pacis have also clarified its representation on the Forma Urbis, identifying a raised podium which supported the base for the cult statue. More significant is the discovery that the Forum of Caesar was initially 20 m shorter at its southern end. Here, excavations from 2006–8 identified the foundations of the original portico, cut through by an Augustan drainage channel which suggests that this phase lasted only as long as the triumviral period. This enhances the picture of the imperial fora as dynamic, evolving complexes, already signalled by evidence for the removal of two exedrae from the Forum of Augustus or an abandoned temple in the Forum of Nerva.
Meanwhile, excavations undertaken since 2005 beneath the Palazzo Valentini and in preparation for a metro station in the Piazza Venezia have cast considerable new light on the district north-west of Trajan's Forum. M. reports new finds of houses beneath the Palazzo and a Hadrianic structure consisting of a flight of at least four monumental steps delimited with marble slabs. It is here, though, that a delay in publication might have worked to M.'s advantage. Further work since publication has revealed more sets of steps built in matching pairs, now recognizable as the seating for at least three auditoria, and believed to be connected with Hadrian's Athenaeum. Indeed, this whole area continues to yield new discoveries and provoke fresh debate right up to the time of writing, including major new theories about the location of the Temple of Trajan.
M.'s discussion of the Markets of Trajan rests on firmer foundations. Recent work here has focused on consolidation and restoration, so that the pace of new discovery is more moderate. M. concentrates mainly on issues of interpretation, culminating in the interesting suggestion that the Grande Aula, now the seat of the Museo dei Fori Imperiali, may originally have served as the barracks for a cohort of vigiles. The idea rests on small fragments of evidence: two unusual rectangular structures on the external corners of the building, and two inscriptions out of their original context. But it is well-constructed, and if correct, would represent a valuable step forward in our understanding of Rome's imperial fire service.
As for the future, M. reports that plans to remove the Via in Miranda and Via Alessandrina have been put on hold, with conservation of the exposed areas now being treated as a higher priority. As already noted, though, new excavations around the Piazza Venezia continue, and it will be some years before anyone can write a stable and comprehensive account of this area. In the meantime, M.'s publication will be an essential reference point for any further discussion of the fora and their surroundings.
