Julius Caesar’s stabbing arena thrown open to public in Rome

Rome is opening a new walkway on the ancient site

A view shows the Largo Argentina archaeological site on 14 April 2021 in central Rome (AFP via Getty Images)

Rome has decided to open to the public the ancient square where Julius Caesar was supposedly stabbed to death.

It was reported that authorities in Rome are opening a new walkway on the ancient site on Tuesday in a historic decision.

The remains of ancient structures – including the one where Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC – have been opened to tourists.

Julius Caesar was assassinated by about 40 Roman senators on the “Ides of March”, or 15 March, in 44 BC.

The stabbing was immortalised in Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, in which the Roman dictator’s famous last words were “Et tu, Brute? (You too, Brutus?)” after he saw his friend Brutus among his murderers.

The real life Caesar died in the capital’s central Largo Argentina square, which houses the remains of four temples dating as far back as the third century BC.

These four ancient temples stand in the middle of one of the modern city’s busiest crossroads. But now authorities are throwing open the “sacred area” on the edge of the site where Julius Caeser was assassinated to tourists and history buffs.

Visitors will be able to move through the site at ground level on the walkway and see the structures up close from Tuesday, reported Reuters.

With help of funding from Italian luxury jeweller Bulgari, the grouping of temples can now be visited by the public.

The ancient temples were first discovered and excavated during the demolition of medieval-era buildings in the late 1920s as part of dictator Benito Mussolini’s campaign to remake the urban landscape.

According to local media, the tourist attraction will now be open every day except Monday and during some major holidays.

(Additional reporting by agencies)