Meta Sudans

The Meta Sudans was a monumental Roman fountain that once stood near the Colosseum and the Arch of Constantine in Rome. It was a landmark feature of the imperial period cityscape, noted in ancient descriptions and later depictions.

In its final form the Meta Sudans functioned as a public fountain, a conspicuous urban feature in the area between the Colosseum and the Palatine. It is known from ancient accounts, medieval drawings and archaeological evidence rather than from a surviving intact structure.

The fountain was removed during the 20th century as the cityscape around the Roman Forum was altered during the Fascist period; archaeological remains and footprints mark its former position. Scholarly reconstruction is based on historical sources and excavated foundations.

The original site lies in central Rome, on the edge of the Colosseum precinct and the Roman Forum, where the modern Via dei Fori Imperiali runs between the Colosseum and the forum area.

• Remains and location: No standing structure survives today; the site is identifiable in the Roman Forum area between the Colosseum and the Palatine where it once stood.