The Forum of Pompeii, as in any Roman city, served as the civic epicenter and commercial core of life in the city. It was a large, rectangular space, surrounded on three sides by colonnades, while the fourth side was occupied by the Temple of Jupiter, with several significant public buildings surrounding it.

This space was 145 meters long by 38 meters wide and was paved with stone. In the Forum were erected commemorative statues of the emperor, members of his family and local citizens of some importance.

It was common to see tables or benches in the Forum where merchants presented their products to the public. These were placed at the edges of the free area, next to the colonnades, and on rainy days they were moved to the corridors, roofed corridors where people strolled and conducted business.

The entrance to the Forum was marked by a large bronze door, and inside this space no carriages were allowed to circulate.

In addition, there were public tablets in the Forum where relevant news of the time was recorded, such as the results of elections or the programming of shows. There were even individuals who took advantage of this medium to express their complaints or promote their businesses. For example, one could find inscriptions such as, "Macerior requests the Aedile to prohibit noise in the streets so as not to disturb the sleep of decent people."