The Arch of Septimius Severus

As you go down the Clivus Capitolinus, you reach the Arch of Septimius Severus, one of the few triumphal arches that have survived more or less intact. A symbol and a statement of victory, this arch is decorated in reliefs showing significant moments of the war it is celebrating.

The heroic deeds of the victor confirmed the greatness of Rome, the Capital of the Empire. The experienced warrior Septimius Severus is shown in his triumphal procession after annihilating the Parthians in 288 AD. Behind you is the Temple of Saturn, built in the 5th century BC where the treasury of the Roman people was located. The small mortar cone at the foot of the temple is all that remains of the Miliarum Aureum, the Golden Milestone, placed here by the Emperor Augustus to indicate the provenance of all the roads leading out of Rome.
Beside the arch itself is a monument covered by a roof, the Umbilicus Urbis, the navel of Rome. In ancient times, earth from the villages that formed the city of Rome was mixed together in this well to symbolize their allegiance.