Famous Landmarks of Ancient Rome: The History of the Colosseum, the Forum, and the Appian Way

*Includes pictures *Includes accounts of the landmarks written by ancient Romans *Includes bibliographies for further reading *Includes a table of contents The Roman Empire is the most famous in history, and the center of the far-reaching empire’s activities was located in the Forum, a low area between the Capitoline and Palatine hills in Rome. The topography held a great deal of significance for Romans, and consequently so many layers of myth were laid on top of the landscape and buildings that it is difficult to separate legend from actual historical fact. As a low-lying area near the Tiber river, the Forum was subject to much flooding, and even into the 20th century, the Forum area could flood upwards of over 40 feet above sea level. This would factor significantly in the imagination of Romans, who later ascribed the flooding with saving the city’s founders, Romulus and Remus, from execution. However, in the 8th and 7th centuries B.C., this did not make for a good area for construct