Editing Roman Forum (section)

===Renaissance===
The Forum Romanum suffered some of its worst depredations during the Italian Renaissance, particularly in the decade between 1540 and 1550, when [[Pope Paul III]] exploited it intensively for material to build the new [[Saint Peter's Basilica]].<ref name="Lanciani, 1897; p. 247-48">Lanciani, 1897, pp. 247–248</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.world-archaeology.com/books/the-roman-forum/| title=The Roman Forum| publisher=world-archaeology.com| year=2010| access-date=2020-02-23}}</ref> Just a few years before, in 1536, the [[Holy Roman Emperor]] [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] held a triumph in Rome on his return from [[Conquest of Tunis (1535)|conquering Tunis]] in North Africa. To prepare the Forum for the procession intended to imitate the pageantry of the ancient Roman triumph, the papal authorities undertook sweeping demolitions of the many medieval structures on the site, to reveal and better display the ancient monuments.<ref>{{cite book |author=Beard |first=Mary |title=The Roman Triumph |publisher=Harvard University Press |year=2007 |page=53}}</ref> This required the clearance of some 200 houses and several churches, the excavation of a new "Via Sacra" to pass under the arches of [[Arch of Titus|Titus]] and [[Arch of Septimius Severus|Septimius Severus]], and the excavation of the more prominent monuments to reveal their foundations.<ref>{{cite book| title=The Ruin of the Eternal City| author=David Karmon| publisher=Oxford University Press| year=2011|page=107}}</ref>

In 1425, [[Pope Martin V]] issued a [[papal bull]] inaugurating a campaign of civic improvement and rebuilding in the city, which was depopulated and dominated by ruins.<ref>{{cite book |author=Karmon |first=David |title=The Ruin of the Eternal City |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2011 |pages=49–50}}</ref> The demand for building materials consequently increased significantly, making the Forum a convenient quarry for stone and marble.

Since the 12th century, when Rome's civic government was formed, responsibility for protecting the ruins of the forum fell to the ''maestri di strade'' under the authority of the [[Conservatore of Rome|Conservatori]], Rome's senior magistrates.<ref>Karmon,2011; pp. 54–55</ref> Historically, the ''maestri'' and the ''Conservatori'' saw themselves as guardians of Rome's ancient legacy and zealously protected the ruins in the Forum from further destruction, but in the 15th century the Papacy gradually encroached upon these prerogatives. The Bull of 1425 strengthened the powers of the ''maestri'' in protecting the ruins, but in conferring papal authority the Vatican essentially brought the ''maestri'' under its control and away from the independence of the Conservators.<ref>Karmon,2011; pp. 49–50</ref>

In the 15th century, the Vatican escalated the issuance of excavation licenses, which gave broad permission to individuals to mine specific sites or structures for stone.<ref>{{cite book |author=Lanciani |first=Rodolfo |title=The Ruins and excavations of ancient Rome: a companion book for students and travellers |year=1897 |page=246}}</ref> In 1452, the ability of the ''maestri'' to issue their own excavation licenses was revoked by the Bull of [[Pope Nicholas V]], which absorbed that power into the Vatican. From then on only two authorities in Rome had the power to issue such licenses: the Vatican and the Conservators.<ref>Karmon, 2011; pp. 65–69</ref> This dual, overlapping authority was recognized in 1462 by a Bull of [[Pope Pius II]].<ref>Karmon, 2011; p. 69</ref>
 
Within the context of these disputes over jurisdiction, ruins in the forum were increasingly exploited and stripped. In 1426, a papal license authorized the destruction of the foundations of a structure called the "Templum Canapare" for burning into lime, provided that half the stone quarried be shared with the [[Apostolic Camera]] (the Papal treasury). This structure was identified by [[Rodolfo Lanciani]] as the [[Basilica Julia]], but the name could have applied to any structure in the western section of the Forum, often called the ''Canapare'' or ''[[Hemp in the Papal States|Cannapara]]''.<ref>Karmon, 2011; pp. 58–60</ref> Between 1431 and 1462 the huge travertine wall between the Senate House and the [[Forum of Caesar]] adjoining the Forum Romanum was demolished by a grant of [[Pope Eugene IV]], followed by the demolition of the ''Templum Sacrae Urbis'' (1461–1462), the [[Temple of Venus and Roma]] (1450), and the [[House of the Vestals]] (1499), all by papal license.<ref>Lanciani, 1897; p. 247</ref> The worst destruction in the forum occurred under Paul III, who in 1540 revoked previous excavation licenses and brought the forum exclusively under the control of the Deputies of the Fabric of the new [[Saint Peter's Basilica]], who exploited the site for stone and marble.<ref name="Lanciani, 1897; pp. 247-48">Lanciani, 1897; pp. 247–248</ref><ref>{{Cite web| url=https://www.world-archaeology.com/books/the-roman-forum/| title=The Roman Forum| date=4 September 2010| publisher=world-archaeology.com| access-date=2020-01-04}}</ref> Monuments which fell victim to dismantling and the subsequent burning of their materials for lime included the remains of the [[Arch of Augustus, Rome|Arch of Augustus]], the [[Temple of Caesar]], parts of the [[Temple of Antoninus and Faustina]], the [[Temple of Vesta]], the steps and foundation of the [[Temple of Castor and Pollux]], and the [[Regia]].<ref>Lanciani, 1897; p. 248</ref> The Conservators protested vehemently against the ruination of their heritage, as they perceived it, and on one occasion applied fruitlessly to [[Pope Gregory XIII]] (1572–1585) to revoke all licenses for foraging materials, including the one granted to the ''fabbrica'' of Saint Peter's in the forum.<ref>{{cite book |author=Rodolfo Lanciani |url=https://archive.org/details/destructionanci02lancgoog |title=The Destruction of Ancient Rome: A Sketch of the History of the Monuments |publisher=Macmillan |year=1899 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/destructionanci02lancgoog/page/n249 228]–231; 234–235}}</ref>