History has been clear that Julius Caesar was killed in the portico of the Theater of Pompey on March 15, 44 B.C. (the Ides of March) as he made his way to a session of the Senate – but the infamous site has never been found.
“We always knew that Julius Caesar was killed in the Curia of Pompey on March 15th 44 B.C. because the classical texts pass on so, but so far no material evidence of this fact, so often depicted in historicist painting and cinema, had been recovered.”
Caesar, who played a critical role in Rome’s transformation from the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire, was making his way to a Senate session when he was stopped by a group of men (the assassins) to review a petition. Conspirators crowded around Caesar to offer support and debate the petition, which was a request from Tillius Cimber to recall his exiled brother. Casca then produced a dagger and struck at Caesar’s throat but Caesar grabbed his arm saying, “Casca, you villain, what are you doing?” Within moments the entire group, including Brutus, began stabbing the dictator. Stabbed 23 times, he fell to the ground and died, his last words being, “Et tu, Brute?” (e.g. “You too, Brutus?”)
Historians noted that years after the assassination, the Curia was closed and a memorial built by Augustus to condemn the murder. Now according to a new Spanish National Research Council report, archeologists believe they have discovered the first physical evidence of the historic spot.
Archaeologists unearthed a concrete structure nearly 10 feet wide by 6 ½ feet tall that they feel may have been the memorial erected by Augustus in memory of the assassination. The concrete structure is located at the base of the Curia or Theater, of Pompey, the spot described by classical writers as the place the stabbing occurred. The matching of the location and the finding of the memorial structure lead archaeologists to believe that they have finally discovered the location of the murder that may have changed the course of history.