Trajan's Market

The Italians have, apparently, always liked shopping.  Trajan's Market, which was a ginormous shopping mall, was another thing which I did not see.  I can't remember for sure, but might this be where Charlton Heston was sold as a slave in Ben Hur?--That was in Rome, wasn't it?  The Market was right next to the Victor Emmanuel Monument (the large white monument on the upper left) and a ways away from the Colosseum as you see below.  Trajan's Market is marked with the red "A" pin.

This is street-level view of Trajan's Market, to give you an idea of its scope.  You can see one wall of the Colloseum at the end of the street.

You can see in the picture below, however, that the above view is just the top part of the Market, as the ground floor of the Market is well below street level.


If you notice on the map above, you can see a "Julius Caesar's Statute" label.  You can see that picture here, with the Forum in the background.  You can also see a couple of historic Centurions and you can tell that it was quite a bit cooler when the Google car drove by than when I was in Rome.

These are some more artistic views of the Market, from Wikimedia.