Origins and Route

The Via Sacra is first documented in Latin literary sources of the sixth century BC, though its origins are almost certainly older, reaching back to the earliest Palatine settlements of the ninth and eighth centuries BC. The name — literally "sacred road" — did not denote a single official act of consecration but rather the accumulated sanctity derived from the many shrines, altars, and religious monuments lining its course.

The main route ran along the floor of the Forum Valley, partly following the ancient bed of the Velabrum, the stream that drained the basin between the Capitoline and Palatine hills. From the summit of the Capitoline the road descended toward the Forum, crossed the central area of the Forum Romanum, climbed toward the Velia (the saddle between the Palatine and Esquiline), and reached the Arch of Titus before continuing toward the Colosseum precinct.

The designation varied by section: the highest stretch near the Capitoline was sometimes called the Clivus Capitolinus; the central section through the Forum was the Via Sacra proper; the stretch beyond the Velia toward the Colosseum was often referred to as the Sacra Via Summa in ancient sources.

The Road in Daily Roman Life

Despite its august name, the Via Sacra was also one of Rome's busiest and most commercial streets. Along its edges stood shops, tabernae, goldsmiths' workshops, perfumers, money-changers, and vendors of sacred objects. Horace, in the Satires (I, 9), immortalised the Via Sacra as a place of chance encounters and unwanted conversation: "ibam forte Via Sacra, sicut meus est mos" — "I was walking along the Via Sacra, as is my habit." The setting confirms that the street was frequented every day by ordinary people.

This coexistence of the sacred and the commercial was typically Roman: urban space did not observe the modern separation between religious and profane spheres. Shrines were embedded in the city fabric, and the roads leading to altars were the same ones used by vendors, litigants, and passers-by.

The Triumphal Procession: the Pompa Triumphalis

The most solemn moment on the Via Sacra was the triumph (triumphus), the military procession celebrating victories by Roman generals approved by the Senate. The triumphal ceremony was the highest honour the Republic and later the Empire could bestow on a victorious commander.

The triumphal cortège followed a codified route. It departed from the Campus Martius, passed through the Circus Maximus, moved through the Forum Boarium, climbed the Capitoline, then descended along the Clivus Capitolinus and traversed the Roman Forum along the Via Sacra to the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline, where the general offered sacrifice.

The procession was structured in distinct sections:

  1. Magistrates and senators opened the cortège
  2. Trumpeters (tubicines) announced the advance
  3. Wagons bearing war spoils: statues, precious objects, weapons
  4. Prominent captives in chains, destined for execution or slavery
  5. The general's lictors carrying the fasces
  6. The general on the triumphal chariot (currus triumphalis), face painted red in imitation of the statue of Jupiter, holding an ivory sceptre and a laurel crown
  7. The victorious army, singing songs of praise and ribald verses (versus triumphales) to ward off invidia deorum
  8. A slave held a gold crown over the general's head while whispering: "Respice post te, hominem te memento" — "Look behind you, remember that you are a man"

Great Triumphs on the Via Sacra

The Via Sacra witnessed some of the most memorable ceremonies in Roman history.

Triumph of Camillus (396 BC): Marcus Furius Camillus, dictator and conqueror of Veii, celebrated the first great documented triumph with a chariot drawn by white horses — traditionally reserved for the gods — causing scandal among his contemporaries for this near-divine ambition.

Triumphs of Caesar (46–45 BC): Julius Caesar celebrated four consecutive triumphs for his victories in Gaul, Egypt, Pontus, and Africa. The words "veni, vidi, vici" were displayed on one of the wagons. The Gallic chieftain Vercingetorix was paraded as a captive and later strangled in the Mamertine Prison.

Triumph of Augustus (29 BC): Octavian celebrated three triumphs for Illyricum, Actium, and Egypt. A statue of Cleopatra adorned with the queen's jewels was displayed. This triumph sealed the end of the civil wars and inaugurated the Principate.

Triumph of Titus (71 AD): Celebrated alongside his father Vespasian, this was the triumph for the victory over Judaea and the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem. Among the spoils were the seven-branched Menorah, the silver trumpets, and the Table of Showbread — all depicted in the reliefs of the Arch of Titus, which still stands at the end of the Via Sacra.

Monuments along the Via Sacra

Walking the Via Sacra from the Arch of Titus toward the Capitoline, the principal monuments appear in this order:

Arch of Titus (81 AD): The entry point to the Via Sacra from the Colosseum side. Built by Domitian in memory of his brother Titus. The internal reliefs document the spoils brought from Jerusalem.

Temple of Venus and Roma (135 AD): Designed by Hadrian, it was the largest temple in Rome — two back-to-back cellae (Roma facing the Forum, Venus facing the Colosseum). Some columns survive on the Forum side.

Basilica of Maxentius (312 AD): Its southern face overlooks the Via Sacra. The three surviving arcades of the north aisle are visible from the road.

Temple of Antoninus and Faustina (141 AD): The best-preserved temple in the Forum, thanks to its conversion into a church (San Lorenzo in Miranda). The pronaos with monolithic cipollino marble columns dominates the north side of the Via Sacra.

Temple of Romulus (309 AD): With its original bronze doors still in place. The circular niche and rectangular pronaos flank the Via Sacra.

Basilica Aemilia (179 BC): On the north side. The pavement with bronze coins fused into the basalt during Alaric's sack (410 AD) is still visible in places.

Curia Julia (29 BC): The seat of the Roman Senate, rebuilt by Caesar and Augustus. The current door is a copy; the original was transferred to the Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano.

Rostra (44 BC): The orators' platform, rebuilt by Caesar with the rams (rostra) of captured ships, facing the Via Sacra and the Forum square.

Temple of Saturn (497–498 BC, rebuilt 42 BC): The eight Ionic granite columns close the western prospect of the Forum along the Via Sacra.

Paving and Construction Technique

The road surface of the Via Sacra was laid with volcanic basalt (selce), the grey-black volcanic stone quarried from the Alban Hills and the Castelli Romani volcanic region. Irregular blocks of silex were set to form a rough but extremely durable surface capable of withstanding the daily passage of heavy carts, animals, and crowds.

In particularly important sections — such as the stretch in front of the Curia and the principal temples — the paving might be supplemented by raised pavements (pontes) and drainage channels on either side.

Nineteenth- and twentieth-century excavations identified several overlapping pavement layers, documenting a sequence of rebuildings spanning more than a thousand years: from the Republican period through Late Antiquity. The deepest strata still carry traces of deeply incised cart ruts cut into the basalt.

The Via Sacra in Religion and Death

Beyond triumphs, the Via Sacra was traversed by other solemn cortèges. Imperial funeral processions (pompae funebres) carried emperors' remains through the Forum toward the Campus Martius or, in late antiquity, toward the new funerary basilica.

The ludi funebres — games in honour of distinguished dead — often used the Via Sacra as the processional axis. The funeral of Caesar (44 BC) ended in the Roman Forum with the cremation of his body in front of the Curia — an event that triggered the first popular uprising against his assassins.

The Via Sacra was also the route of the Vestal Virgins in the performance of their ritual duties: carrying water from the Juturna spring, depositing offerings at temples, and participating in public ceremonies. The House of the Vestals opened onto a lane running parallel to the Via Sacra.

Medieval Transformation

With the decline of the Empire and the abolition of pagan cults (Theodosian Edict of 391 AD), the Via Sacra gradually lost its political and religious function. In subsequent centuries the Roman Forum became the Campo Vaccino — the "field of cows" — where medieval farmers grazed their livestock among the ruins of the temples.

The Via Sacra did not disappear entirely: its course was partly maintained as a rural track crossing the Campo Vaccino. Some paving stones were reused in medieval construction; others were buried under progressive sediment accumulation. The medieval ground level was approximately six to eight metres higher than the ancient surface.

During the Middle Ages, great temples were converted into churches or fortresses: the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina became San Lorenzo in Miranda; the Temple of Romulus was incorporated into the church of Santi Cosma e Damiano; the Temple of Saturn was partially dismantled for its marble.

Modern Excavations

The systematic recovery of the Via Sacra began with the Napoleonic excavations of 1803, directed by Carlo Fea, and continued throughout the nineteenth century with campaigns by Pietro Rosa (1869–1885) under Victor Emmanuel II. Giacomo Boni's excavations in the early twentieth century uncovered the oldest Forum levels and documented the stratigraphy of the Via Sacra to a depth of over three metres.

Work continues today: the most recent excavation campaigns, conducted by the Soprintendenza Speciale di Roma in collaboration with European and American universities, have clarified the sequence of overlapping pavements and identified traces of structures predating the Republican period, confirming the great antiquity of the road's alignment.

The most spectacular surviving stretch of the Via Sacra — with original basalt blocks still in situ — lies in the segment between the Basilica of Maxentius and the Arch of Titus.

How to Walk the Via Sacra Today

Entry to the Via Sacra route is included in the combined Colosseum–Roman Forum–Palatine ticket.

The optimal route runs from the Arch of Titus toward the Capitoline:

  • Arch of Titus (81 AD) — Menorah reliefs
  • Temple of Venus and Roma (135 AD) — surviving columns on the Forum side
  • Basilica of Maxentius (312 AD) — three north arcades visible from the road
  • Temple of Antoninus and Faustina (141 AD) — pronaos with cipollino columns
  • Temple of Romulus (309 AD) — original bronze doors
  • Basilica Aemilia (179 BC) — coins fused in the pavement
  • Curia Julia (29 BC) — the bronze door
  • Rostra — orators' platform

The full route takes approximately 90 minutes at a moderate pace, not including stops at individual monuments.

Visit the Via Sacra with a Private Driver

The Via Sacra lies within the Roman Forum, included in the combined Colosseum–Forum–Palatine ticket.

Visit the Via Sacra and the Roman Forum with a private driver: arrive in comfort at the heart of Imperial Rome. Service from €49. → Book your driver at myromedriver.com

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is the Via Sacra? The section within the Roman Forum measures approximately 500 metres. The full axis from the Capitoline to the Colosseum area was just over 700 metres.

Is the basalt on the Via Sacra original? Largely yes: the stretch between the Basilica of Maxentius and the Arch of Titus preserves basalt volcanic blocks in situ, dating to the Imperial period. Some sections have been integrated with modern restoration material.

Why is it called "sacred"? The name derived from the concentration of shrines, altars, and religious monuments along the route, not from any official act of consecration. It was the road through which Rome's most important religious and political processions passed.

Can you still see the ruts left by triumphal chariots? Yes: some basalt blocks along the route preserve deep grooves left by cart wheels during centuries of heavy traffic. They are particularly visible in the central Forum section.

Is the Via Sacra walkable today? Yes, the route is open to visitors with the combined ticket. The path runs partly over original paving stones and partly over modern walkways alongside them.

Article No. 46 — TIER S — MON-03 Roman Forum + Palatine Type: HISTORY Words: ~2,400

See also