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43-697: Within the building were the remains of the Temple of Veiovis . In front of it were the Temples of Vespasian and Concord , as well as the Rostra and the rest of the forum. Presently the Tabularium is only accessible from within the Capitoline Museums , although it still provides a panoramic view over the forum. The construction of the Tabularium was ordered around 78 BC by the dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla . The building

86-452: A large temple of the Sullan period, restored by Domitian after the fire of 80 AD". Throughout his work, Coarelli uses the findings of Purcell, von Hesberg and Tucci as a roadmap that forms the basis of his argument. He begins with Purcell's epigraphic discoveries that connotes the classification of the Tabularium as a records building: Populi tabularia ubi publici continentur ( tabularia of

129-416: A sounding board for Coarelli's initial thesis, that the Tabularium served as the basement of a proposed temple. Coarelli tracks the structural changes that took place within the Tabularium, and ultimately concludes that it is challenging for historians to ascertain the absolute meaning of this structure due to the "complexity of [it]". He points out that only until recently have we been able to understand that

172-452: Is able to suggest that the Tabularium is rather a multifaceted structure that pertained to the political and religious centre of the Roman world. [REDACTED] Media related to Tabularium (Rome) at Wikimedia Commons Temple of Veiovis The Temple of Veiovis in ancient Rome was the temple of the god Veiovis , built sometime in the early 1st century BC. The temple was sited in

215-471: Is clear that the Tabularium was a multifaceted building that pertained to the political and religious culture of the Roman Empire. Thus, by expanding upon the arguments of Purcell, von Hesberg and Tucci, Coarelli positions himself to further execute his overarching thesis with increased clarity. Fundamentally, by galvanising the "deep-rooted biases" that obfuscate the understanding of the Tabularium, Coarelli

258-522: Is likely that the Tabularium in question, despite the sheer size fronting the Capitoline Hill, was one of many structures built for the purpose of holding records. Purcell's assessment of the epigraphic evidence once found within the structure in question reaffirms the following view, long held by academics, that the Tabularium is insufficiently documented and the product of scholarly inertia. This, unfortunately, has further compounded our understanding of

301-412: Is not shared by many other Roman buildings – probably on account of the very limited space available – is the transversally-elongated cella, whose width is almost double its depth (15 x 8.90 metres). The temple's high podium has a lime-and-mortar internal nucleus lined with travertine marble , the same stone that was used to pave the temple court. The façade runs in line with the road that climbed up from

344-496: The Capitoline Museums . It had been saved by being superimposed underneath the foundation of later buildings on the site on the Capitoline Hill . It was identified as the temple of Veiovis from the ancient sources and from the discovery of a marble cult statue in its cella . The sources state that his statue had a beardless head and carried a bundle of arrows in his right hand. The chief feature of this temple, and one which

387-473: The Clivus Capitolinus , and features a pronaos with four pillars in the central part preceded by a flight of steps. Three distinct building phases have been identified, the last of which has been dated to the first quarter of the 1st century BC and is linked with the building of the Tabularium. The temple was then restored by emperor Domitian with the addition of brick pillars and coloured marble lining

430-538: The Senatorial provinces increasingly became transferred from the aerarium to the fiscus through the early Principate . By the reign of Honorius and the Theodosian code , any vestigial distinctions had fallen away. The extent to which records were centralised in the aerarium may be exaggerated. The various reforms done at previous times may imply negligent management, falsification, or loss of records. Even in

473-452: The aerarium to two praefecti aerarii , chosen annually by the Senate from ex- praetors . In AD 23, these were replaced by two praetors ( praetores aerarii or ad aerarium ), selected by lot during their term of office. Claudius in 44 restored the quaestors, but had them nominated by the emperor for three years. In 56, Nero substituted two ex-praetors selected under the same conditions. By

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516-466: The 13th century, when the Palazzo dei Senatori was built. Some scholars, such as Filippo Coarelli, in the past, have suggested that the Tabularium itself is unattested to in any literary sources. Furthermore, its function and purpose has been the subject of debate. The unity of the main structure does however suggest that the building was at least initially conceived to serve a singular purpose. To illustrate

559-473: The Capitoline substructure and, as a result, we are no closer to identifying the extent of its function, let alone its name. An article by Pier Luigi Tucci (2005) radically changed the way historians and archaeologists alike would view the Tabularium, questioning the very identification of the structure and its function. Exploring the history of archaeology at the site, Tucci makes clear that the identification of

602-467: The Republican period, Cicero lamented the extent to which the public records were managed and in later periods, the extent to which the public records were really used for reference is controversial: scholars, eg Mommsen, have argued that the sources of law in the later empire were not based on state records but rather those of private individuals, law schools, and provincial administrators. In addition to

645-490: The Tabularium actually existed due to the emergence of from six military diplomas, with dates ranging from  85–88 AD. Further, these diplomas refer the location of the Tabularium publicum to the Capitolium . Here, the location is extremely significant. Coarelli states that the Tabularium "must have been situated in the immediate environs of the area Capitolina, where the military diplomas were displayed until 90 AD". Thus, it

688-493: The Temple of Juno Moneta was rededicated atop the substructure of the Tabularium, in a complex which included the extended aerarium , and that this relocation likely occurred after the fire of 83 BC. As a result, Tucci called into question both the identification and function of the so-called Tabularium, in his attempt to overturn a theory that had been taken for historical fact since the 15th century AD. Fillipo Coarelli (2010) uses

731-485: The Voturia tribe, chief engineer to Q. Lucius Catulus when he was consul, architect (to him) when he was censor." Nicholas Purcell's article " Atrium Libertatis " is aligned with the view of contemporary historians regarding the epigraphic evidence once present within the Tabularium. In his detailed analysis of the now-lost inscriptions, Purcell makes clear that these inscriptions have compounded our misunderstanding of one of

774-452: The [Roman] people where the public [documents] are housed). Moving to von Hesberg, Coarelli highlights the study of the dimensions of architectural pieces from the Tabularium that suggest "the second floor of the building must have been significantly wider than the arched lower floor", proposing that there was a temple structure within the Tabularium. Finally, Coarelli's inclusion of Tucci's findings builds upon von Hesberg's assertion, serving as

817-410: The arguments and findings of Nicholas Purcell (1993), Henner von Hesberg (1995) and Pier Luigi Tucci (2005) to propose an alternative understanding of the function of the Tabularium. These works are characterised by their ability to provide alternative understandings when questioning the function of the Tabularium. It is important to note that prior these studies, research and scholarship of the Tabularium

860-430: The building, which further reflects the prevailing credulity of the structure in question. Purcell's reference to the archaeological research conducted by Theodor Mommsen aligns with his argument and likely indicates that historians must set aside such misunderstandings reflected in the literary sources. As Mommsen stated quite rightly, that Tabularium may refer to any structure associated with administration. Therefore, it

903-412: The case of the equites, the term was subsequently extended to include all those who possessed the property qualification that would have entitled them to serve as tribuni aerarii. Prior to the decemvirate in 451 BC, there was a separate institution known as the publicum . On a number of occasions it is recorded that various patricians incurred the anger of the plebs by paying the spoils from war into

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946-471: The city of Rome during the civil war looted this special fund. Besides creating the fiscus , Augustus also established in AD ;6 a military treasury ( aerarium militare ) as a fund for veterans' retirement benefits. It was first endowed by 170 million sesterces of the emperor's own funds, supported by new taxes, a five per cent inheritance tax and a one per cent sales tax on auctions. Its administration

989-502: The common treasury, supported by the general taxes and charged with the ordinary expenditure, there was a special reserve fund, also in the Temple of Saturn, the aerarium sanctum (or sanctius ). This fund probably originally consisted of the spoils of war . Afterwards it was maintained chiefly by a five per cent tax on the value of all manumitted slaves. This fund was not to be touched except in cases of extreme necessity. This continued until 49 BC when Julius Caesar , after seizing

1032-538: The complexity of the building, Filippo Coarelli has stated that a particular annex of the Aerarium Saturni was constructed specifically to house metal ingots and minted Republican coins. Recent evidence, in the form of six military diplomas dated from 85 to 88 AD, confirms the existence of the Tabularium in its renowned form. Coarelli has suggested that the Tabularium can be dated precisely to 78 BC, although construction began many years prior and almost certainly prior to

1075-550: The death of Sulla. The building itself is in many ways intrinsically tied to the politics of Sulla, especially in regard to the temple substructure. The structure was considered such an enduring masterpiece of late Republican architecture, that a funerary inscription for the architect, commissioned by Lutatius Catalus, was created and preserved in a courtyard of the hospital of the Fatebenefatelli, on Tiber island. The inscription reads as follows: "Lucius Cornelius, son of Lucius, of

1118-625: The floor and cella walls. Aerarium Aerarium , from aes ("bronze, money") + - ārium ("place for"), was the name given in Ancient Rome to the public treasury , and in a secondary sense to the public finances. The main aerarium , that of the Roman people, was the aerarium Saturni located below the Temple of Saturn at the foot of the Capitoline hill . The Roman state stored here financial and non-financial state documents – including Roman laws and senatus consulta – along with

1161-558: The forum on a massive substructure, is still partly preserved. This corridor was lighted through a series of arches divided by semi-detached columns of the Doric order, the earliest example of this class of decoration, which is in the Theatre of Marcellus, the Colosseum, and all the great amphitheatres throughout the Roman Empire, constituted the decorative treatment of the wall surface and gave scale to

1204-562: The function and meaning of the Tabularium. Within Substructio et tabularium , Coarelli fundamentally purports that "the so-called Tabularium is not the archive of the Roman State, known by this name, and the rejection of this long held but incorrect hypothesis permits us to study the monument afresh". He goes on to state that "[the Tabularium] represents in fact the foundations (substructio) of

1247-548: The largest, oldest and best-preserved buildings of the Roman Republic. The generic terms probatio of a substructio and a Tabularium were recorded by an early Renaissance antiquarian in that order. It is arguable that the identification of the so-called "Tabularium" is incorrect. Purcell draws our attention to the lack of archaeological and epigraphic knowledge on tabularia , suggesting that these inscriptions were not intended to be grandiose in scope, nor did they name

1290-478: The latter, is uncertain. According to Theodor Mommsen , they were persons who possessed the equestrian census , but no public horse. They were removed from the list of judices by Julius Caesar , but replaced by Augustus. According to Madvig , the original tribuni aerarii were not officials at all, but private individuals of considerable means, quite distinct from the curatores tribuum, who undertook certain financial work connected with their own tribes. Then, as in

1333-479: The location of this mint, and that of the Temple of Juno Moneta. With reference to the archaeological research of Giannelli and his identification of concrete remains in the Aracoeli Garden in the forum, Tucci argues for the foundations of Giannelli's supposed Temple of Juno Moneta to date back to the 4th century BC, thus indicating a relocation. Tucci's argument thus is fulfilled as he concludes that in circa 78 BC,

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1376-524: The public treasury. Laws did not become valid until they were deposited there. It also held the standards of the Roman legions ; during the Roman Republic , the urban quaestors managed it under the supervision and control of the Senate. By the classical republican period, the Senate had exclusive authority to disburse funds from it. Caesar replaced quaestorian administration with the administration of two aediles . In 28 BC, Augustus transferred

1419-411: The rooms of the substructure and that of a south-western building, Tucci, in accordance with historians before him, could identify the remnants of an extension of the aerarium , or treasury, which was housed in the Temple of Saturn. Subsequently, in correlation with the accounts of Livy (7.28.4–6), Ovid (Fasti 6.183–185) and Cicero (De domo 38.101), Tucci draws attention to a clear association between

1462-756: The saddle of ground "inter duos lucos", between two sacred groves , one on the Arx and one on the Capitolium (the two peaks of the Capitoline Hill ). The statue of the god stood next to a statue of a goat . In the same area was also situated the Asylum, where, legend has it, Romulus extended hospitality to fugitives from other parts of the Latium region, in order to populate the new city which he founded, with political refugees, escaped slaves, Latins and Etruscans, and, as Florus has it, Phrygians and Arcadians . Its construction

1505-407: The so-called Tabularium is hinged solely upon an inscription long lost (CIL VI 1314, 31597), with no ancient evidence from the period directly correlating to the site. As such, it is arguable that the word "Tabularium" itself has been used incorrectly in modern scholarship with reference to the building. Instead, Tucci argues that the substructure, which provides the foundations for the entire building,

1548-465: The structure. The facade faced the back of the Temple of Concord in the forum and consisted of three levels. The first story was a large and tall fortified wall with a single door and only small windows near the top to light the interior, forum level rooms. The second story featured a Doric arcade (partially preserved) and the third, no longer extant story, had a high Corinthian order colonnade. The upper floors of this structure were much changed in

1591-432: The time of the late republic, the provincial governors had their own provincial treasuries, called a fiscus (initially referring to a "money bag"). Over time, the governors' exchequers merged with that of the emperor into an imperial fiscus . However, after a time, as the power of the emperors further increased, this distinction between senatorially-administered and provincial treasuries became irrelevant. Revenues from

1634-409: The war-tax ( tributum ) in the tribes and the poll-tax on the aerarii . They also acted as paymasters of the equites and of the soldiers on service in each tribe. By the lex Aurelia (70 BC) the list of judices was composed, in addition to senators and equites, of tribuni aerarii. Whether these were the successors of the above, or a new order closely connected with the equites, or even the same as

1677-509: Was completed by Quintus Lutatius Catulus , consul in 78 BC. This was part of a public works programme for the redevelopment of the Capitoline Hill, which had been damaged by a fire in 83 BC. The construction by Catulus is not mentioned in the ancient literature. It is known through an inscription (CIL 1). The building itself had a facade of peperino and travertine blocks. The interior vaults are of concrete . Its great corridor, 67 m (220 ft) long, raised 15 m (49 ft) above

1720-454: Was in the hands of three praefecti aerarii militaris . At first these were appointed by lot, but afterwards by the emperor, from ex-praetors, for three years. The tribuni aerarii ("tribunes of the treasury") have been the subject of much discussion. They are supposed by some to be identical with the curatores tribuum , and to have been the officials who, under the Servian organization , levied

1763-419: Was itself likely a Tabularium, being one of many offices housed within Roman buildings and temples for the purpose of holding records. As such, Tucci disputes the idea that a sole Tabularium or mass archive of Rome ever existed. In alignment with this argument, Tucci subsequently seeks to identify the structure in occupation of the space above the Tabularium substructure. In examining the architectural link between

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1806-474: Was primarily saturated by the Richard Delbrück's Hellenistische Bauten in Latium , published in 1875. It was Delbrück's findings that rendered the conclusion that the Tabularium served as a house of public records. However, writing in 2010, Coarelli has had access to a wider range of both archaeological and written sources that probe a deeper inquest in to traditional discourses that cloud our conception of

1849-552: Was vowed in 200 BC by the praetor Lucius Furius Purpurio in the Battle of Cremona during the war against the Boii , and then dedicated in 192 BC by Quintus Marcius Ralla . The remains of a temple were excavated in 1939 under Benito Mussolini , during the excavation underneath Piazza del Campidoglio for the creation of the Gallery Junction. This may now be seen in the tabularium under

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