Milliarium Aureum Monument

Address: Roman Forum, Rome, Italy (Milliarium Aureum located in the Roman Forum)

The Milliarium Aureum was a Roman monument set up in the Roman Forum by Emperor Augustus around 20 BCE and served as the symbolic central milestone of the Roman road network. It was described by ancient authors as a gilded milestone from which distances to cities in the empire were measured.

Surviving evidence is fragmentary and the monument does not survive in its original form; modern visitors see the Forum area where it once stood and secondary fragments and references in museum collections and inscriptions. No intact gilded milestone is visible on site; the location is treated as an archaeological feature within the Roman Forum complex.

The monument was erected by Augustus to mark the imperial capital as the point of origin for Rome’s roads and to symbolize central authority. Over time the original structure was lost and only literary descriptions, later medieval references, and possible architectural fragments remain to attest to its existence.

It is located in the Roman Forum in central Rome, in the Lazio region of Italy, within the archaeological area between the Via Sacra and the Capitoline Hill, in the historic center of the city.

The Milliarium Aureum (the ancient Roman “Golden Milestone”) stood in the Roman Forum; the site is visited as part of the Forum complex. Reach the Roman Forum on foot from the Colosseo Metro station (Line B) - about a 5-10 minute walk - or from nearby bus stops serving the historic center.

From Roma Termini take Metro Line B one stop to Colosseo, then walk down Via dei Fori Imperiali into the Forum. Driving into central Rome is possible but limited by restricted traffic zones (ZTL) and scarce parking.

• See the Milliarium Aureum as part of a very early visit to the Roman Forum and Comitium - arriving at opening time (or with an early Colosseum/Forum ticket) gives you the clearest view of the low fragment and interpretive signage before tour groups arrive.
• Access the site while touring the Forum/Palatine rather than looking for it as a standalone sight; it survives only as paving and a small marker in the Comitium area, so many visitors miss it unless they pause for the explanatory plaque.