Central Hall of the Basilica Julia

As you enter the central hall, you notice people standing on the second storey of the porticoes, looking down at you from the galleries (see a view of the ruins of this area). The stuccoed arcades and vaults overhead have now given way to the open expanse of the central hall above you, a clerestory rising above one level higher than the gallery. A wooden ceiling supported by trusses caps the room. Four wooden screens, aligned with every third pier, subdivide the central hall so that separate trials (tribunalia) can be conducted simultaneously. Occasionally such screens are removed so that one large trial can be conducted (quadruplex iudicium). Wooden benches are arranged for the jurors. The floor is covered with colorful marbles imported from the provinces. Here are some primary sources on the central hall of the Basilica Julia.

Reconstruction image courtesy of UCLA's Digital Roman Forum.