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'Southern forum' (prätorium?)

A mysterious but prestigious edifice Augusta Raurica researcher Karl Stehlin already carried out a preliminary examination of this complex ('southern forum') by means of a small number of test trenches from 1921 to 1928. The interpretation of this site, however, has remained unresolved to this day. The fate of the important site is now in the hands of the Historic and Antiquarian Society of Basle and it is therefore protected from modern development (information panels).

Today:		In Roman times:
A monumental public building, which was almost as large as the main forum in the east, once lined the present-day Sichelenstrasse leading from the theatre to the amphitheatre. None of this complex's remains are visible today. This so-called 'southern forum' also had a large courtyard (31 by 49 metres), flanked on three sides by columned halls and taverns. It may also have been a market location.
The western wing of the 'southern forum' was an interesting building in terms of its architectural design. It consisted of several symmetrically arranged representative rooms with its western terminal designed as a wide staircase built into the steep slope down to the Ergolz Valley. The location and plan of this generously designed edifice suggest that it may have been a praetorium, i.e. a building which would have housed the offices of high-ranking magistrates.
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