Lacus Curtius

ight in front of the Basilica Julia, you could find the Lacus Curtius - the pond of Curtius - nowadays no more than an inscription on a sign. Its name - lacus, lake - suggests the presence of water, but afterwards, after the water had disappeared, the name was kept. The name Lacus Curtius can be explained in different ways. The first explanation is connected with the period that the forum was still a big swamp. During the war of the Romans and the Sabines, a Sabine general, Mettius Curtius might have died in the swampy marshes. The second explanation, which is connected with a much later period, is much more heroic and therefore more important for the Romans. In 362 BC an earthquake tore open the soil. According to a consulted oracle, the soil could only be closed again, if the Romans threw their most valuable property into the gap. One young soldier picked up the clue. He understood that the oracle had meant a citizen of Rome. He jumped on his horse and dived into the crack in full army outfit.
Later, in the time of the early republic, the Lacus Curtius, which had since then formed into a dry well, was fenced off and an altar in honor of Marcus Curtius was built in the early empire, bearing this inscription: "Curtius ille lacus, siccas qui sustineat aras, Nunc solida est tellus, sed lacus ante fuit." This means: "This is the Lacus Curtius, where altars stand on dry ground; Now the ground is dry, but before there was only water here."

Suetonius accounts of people throwing coins into the Lacus Curtius: "The degree of affection that Augustus won by such behaviour can easily be gauged. The Senatorial decrees may, of course, be discounted asto a certain extent inspired by a sense of obligation. But the Equestrian Order voluntarily and unanimously decided to celebrate his birthday, spreading the festivities over two days; and once a year men of all classes would visit the Curtian Lake, into which they threw the coins, previously vowed for his continued well-being."