Foro Romano e Cripta di San Nicolò

Beneath Piazza del Comune in Assisi lie remains of the Roman forum of Asisium. The archaeological route passes through the crypt of the former church of San Nicolò and reveals the civic spaces that once occupied the centre of the Roman town.

Why it matters

The forum formed the administrative and commercial heart of Roman Asisium. Its remains show how the medieval square grew over the ancient civic centre and preserve traces of Assisi's urban life before the construction of the later town.

What to notice

The archaeological area includes original paving, the platform associated with the Temple of Minerva, a stepped structure identified as the Tribunal, a monumental cistern and the remains of shops, or tabernae. A small shrine associated with Castor and Pollux is also represented. The entrance crypt preserves Roman columns reused in the medieval church.

Context and history

Excavations in the nineteenth century revealed substantial remains beneath the piazza. The church of San Nicolò was later built over part of the forum. Objects from Assisi and its territory, including funerary monuments, are displayed along the underground route.