Comitium
Dublin Core
Title
Comitium
Description
Location: Paestum
Date: 273 BC
Details: In 273, the Romans established a Latin colony at Paestum. (The city was originally called Poseidonia, then, after the take over by an Italian people called Lucanians, it was called Paistos, from which name the Latin "Paestum" was derived.)
As in other Latin colonies, the settlers grafted Roman-style civic structures on top of the older city, in the process transforming the original Greek layout of the town.
The comitium, as in Rome, was a place where citizens met for public meetings (contiones), to elect local magistrates, and for some judicial activities.
At Paestum, the tiered seating of the comitium is still visible. Interestingly, the west side of the comitium building was partly demolished in the first century BC to make room for the (re?)constructed temple to Bona Mens (Good Mind). Thus, the comitium had probably fallen out of use, suggesting that the citizens had begun to meet in another location or the nature of civic activity had changed.
Date: 273 BC
Details: In 273, the Romans established a Latin colony at Paestum. (The city was originally called Poseidonia, then, after the take over by an Italian people called Lucanians, it was called Paistos, from which name the Latin "Paestum" was derived.)
As in other Latin colonies, the settlers grafted Roman-style civic structures on top of the older city, in the process transforming the original Greek layout of the town.
The comitium, as in Rome, was a place where citizens met for public meetings (contiones), to elect local magistrates, and for some judicial activities.
At Paestum, the tiered seating of the comitium is still visible. Interestingly, the west side of the comitium building was partly demolished in the first century BC to make room for the (re?)constructed temple to Bona Mens (Good Mind). Thus, the comitium had probably fallen out of use, suggesting that the citizens had begun to meet in another location or the nature of civic activity had changed.
Creator
Gabriel Baker
Rights
Shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License
Collection
Citation
Gabriel Baker, “Comitium,” Archaeology, Artifacts, & Landscapes, accessed April 18, 2024, https://gabrieldavidbaker.com/digital-exhibit/items/show/8.