The tribune benches were seats in the
Forum Romanum
The Roman Forum, also known by its Latin name Forum Romanum ( it, Foro Romano), is a rectangular forum (plaza) surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient ...
where the
Tribunes of the Plebs would sit during the day in order to be available to
the Roman citizenry.
Function
The tribune benches represented the typical sitting right of the
Roman magistrates. The
plebeian
In ancient Rome, the plebeians (also called plebs) were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, as determined by the census, or in other words " commoners". Both classes were hereditary.
Etymology
The precise origins of ...
tribunes sat on the benches during business hours to perform their duties. Due to the transparency of the tribune benches, it was easy for plebs to contact the tribunes and make use of the ''ius auxilii'', the right of help. Because there was no kind of civil service contact point, the tribunes usually were contacted personally, at the benches, in case of civil problems. Official transactions were conducted orally and, since they were not reduced to writing, in full public view.
Placement of the Benches
Tribunes of the plebs were not allowed to participate at
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
meetings. Their benches were thus placed in front of the entrance to the
Curia, where the Senate met. From this, the tribunes could ratify the senate's decisions immediately, and did not have to make more use of the ''
ius intercedendi
__NOTOC__
''Ius'' or ''Jus'' (Latin, plural ''iura'') in ancient Rome was a right to which a citizen (''civis'') was entitled by virtue of his citizenship (''civitas''). The ''iura'' were specified by laws, so ''ius'' sometimes meant law. As one ...
''.
In later times, the tribune benches were placed in front of the
Basilica Porcia
The Basilica Porcia was the first civil basilica built in ancient Rome. It was built by order of Marcus Porcius Cato in 184 BC as censor and is named after him. He built it as a space for administering laws and for merchants to meet, against some ...
, a public mall near the Forum, to accommodate the large number of people seeking tribunician assistance and to allow the tribunes to make open-air speeches.
[: ''Politische Agitation und Öffentlichkeit in der späten Republik.'' (= Europäische Hochschulschriften. Reihe 3, Band 839), Frankfurt am Main u.a. 1999, S.36-39.] This location was near the
Tarpeian Rock, a steep cliff used as an execution site. The condemned would necessarily pass the tribune benches on their way to execution, thus allowing tribunes to stop an execution of a plebeian by invoking the ''ius intercedendi''.
References
{{Reflist
Roman Forum