As Constantine himself converted to Christianity after his victory in the civil wars, there is much debate as to whether such a triumphal arch would have been dedicated to a pagan deity by Constantine , further compelling the mystery surrounding this monument. This ancient arch can be found in the centre of Rome, near other Roman sites such as the Roman Forum and Colosseum. A number of bus and metro transport options are also available which take around 25 minutes.
Image Credit: Shutterstock. This was not a triumphal arch, but rather an honor to Janus, the god of passages and gates. The Arch of Janus might have served as a gateway between the regions of the Velabrum and the Forum Boarium. It might also have been used as a meeting point for the merchants of the cattle market at the Forum Boarium, providing cover against the sun and rain.
Back in the day, there was an attic above what now remains, and a structure on top, possibly a low pyramid. The arch has twelve niches on each of its four sides, in which long-lost statues of the gods stood.
Those statues were probably short-lived, because within a few years of construction the pagan gods were banned as Rome converted to Christianity. Small columns once flanked the niches but those have also been lost, and the top of each niche is an elegantly carved semi-dome made to resemble a clam shell.
This arch suggests a later conversion. It is likely that the arch was once better decorated; there must have been statues in the forty-eight, now empty niches. Nothing is left. Some of the ancient ornaments, however, survive. The third photos shows a small detail of one of the arches: at first sight, it may be the goddess Minerva.
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