Comitium

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The comitium was in the time of the Roman Republic the customary place for the legislative assembly (comitia). It lay on the edge of the Roman Forum, next to the Curia Julia, in which the Senate typically worked.^[1]

The appearance of the Comitium changed considerably at various times. Originally it was an open square, but later it had a rounded shape, like an amphitheater. At the edge of the Comitium was the Rostra, from which speakers made speeches. As the population grew and not all Romans could fit in the Comitium, speakers in the later Republic spoke from the Rostra to the Forum in general.^[2] Because of reconfigurations, little of the Comitium can be seen today.

Plutarch says in the life of Gaius Gracchus that up until the time of Gaius Gracchus, orators would face the Comitium while speaking. According to Plutarch, the senate was located in the direction of the Comitium (to the right of the orator) while the people where located in the opposite direction (to the left).

[edit] References

^ Nicole Maser (May 23, 2004). "Authority In Public Spaces" (PDF). . Georgia Institute of Technology Retrieved on 2007-02-28.
^ Boëthius, Axel; rev. by Roger Ling and Tom Rasmussen (1978). Etruscan and Early Roman Architecture. New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 0140561447.