Mercati di Traiano Museo dei Fori Imperiali

This guide to Trajan's Markets in Rome follows Apollodorus of Damascus, the emperor's chief architect, who carved this tiered brick and concrete complex into the Quirinal Hill in the early second century. You'll hear why the popular idea of Rome's first shopping mall is largely a myth, and what recent scholarship says these buildings actually managed for the imperial food supply. Look up at the brick vaults still standing along the Via Biberatica.