🧿 Lacus Curtius

The Lacus Curtius was a pit or pool in the ground of the Forum Romanum. The area where the Forum would be built was likely once a lake, as the wider area is known to have been surrounded by brooks and marshes. One part was never drained and gradually shrank until only a basin, known as the Lacus Curtius, was left. Its nature and significance in Rome’s early history is uncertain, and several conflicting stories exist about its origin and purpose.