Trajan's Markets and Trajan's Forum ★

The world's first multi-level shopping mall gives unparalleled insight into the daily life of Ancient Rome

The Emperor Trajan built his markets in the AD 2nd century, and after being closed for years they've become the first of the Imperial Fori to reopen to the public (in 1998).

It now houses the Museo dei Fori Imperali—when it's open, that is. This is one of those Roman sights that has an annoying habit of closing "temporarily" for months or years at a stretch.

You enter around the back side (on Via IV Novembre), into a grand bazaar hall lined by former market stalls with marble porticos and barrel-vaulted ceilings.

These now contain informative placards (in English) on each of the Imperial Fori plus some sculptural bits—most just fragments, but a few with remarkably sharp and well-preserved detailing.

You get to wander the brief but evocative sections of Via Biberatica, the most intact ancient Roman street in the city.

Explore the four stories of 150 empty tabernae (shops) that made up the world’s first multilevel shopping mall.

Clamber up to the top terrace for a bird's eye panorama of the curving market and Forum of Trajan and Forum of Caesar across the street.

When it's open, you can also duck through a tunnel from here that leads under Via de Fori Imperiali to Trajan's Forum (if the tunnel's closed, you can still see it pretty well from the road).

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