The Umbilicus Urbis was the symbolic center of the city of Roma, and thus the center of the Empire. All distances were calculated from this starting point. When Septimius Severus raised his arch next to the Umbilicus in the Forum Romanum in A.D. 203, he also rebuilt the ancient monument. We don’t really know how the Umbilicus Urbis appeared at that time. All that remains today is the brick core, the marble having been removed during the Middle Ages. [www.chi-rhogroup.com]
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