Le Colonnacce - Forum of Nerva, Rome - Minerva above the Ancient Columns

The richly decorated Colonnacce survive from the Forum of Nerva, with Corinthian columns, an ancient frieze and the figure of Minerva still visible above.

Le Colonnacce are among the most distinctive surviving remains of the Forum of Nerva in the heart of ancient Rome. Two Corinthian columns still stand against a section of the original enclosure wall, supporting an elaborately carved entablature and an attic decorated with a relief of the goddess Minerva. Below her, the surviving frieze contains finely carved scenes associated with women’s work. The Forum of Nerva was begun under Emperor Domitian in the narrow space between the earlier Forums of Caesar, Augustus and Peace. Because of the restricted site, conventional porticoes could not be constructed, so columns were placed close to the perimeter wall and connected to it by short sections of entablature. Domitian was assassinated in AD 96 before the complex was inaugurated, and his successor Nerva formally opened it in AD 97, giving the forum its present name. It was also known as the Forum Transitorium because the site formed an important passage between the Roman Forum and the Suburra district.