Umbilicus+Urbis

=//Umbilicus Urbis//= English: "The Umbilical Cord of the City of Rome" "The Navel of the City of Rome" "The Center of the World"



Dates:
Originally constructed in the 2nd Century B.C., the structure is thought to have been improved by Julius and/or Augustus Caesar. During the building of the Arch of Septimius Severus in the later part of the first century A.D., the structure was moved to make more room for the arch.

Information:
It was part of the //Mundus//, an underground gateway to the Underworld. The //Umbilicus Urbis// was only opened 3 times a year, when the spirits of the dead were thought to escape and roam free throughout the city. It sits on the top of the forum, at the highest place of honor in the city, and lies next to the Arch of Septimius Severus and the Lapis Niger. Before the construction of the Golden Milestone by Augustus, the //Umbilicus Urbis// had the distances to all the Roman cities inscribed on its white marble exterior.