Provincial Forum (pl. del Rei)
The Provincial Forum’s lower square was a vast rectangular space measuring 318 x 175 m and surrounded on three sides by an intricate portico. The inside was laid out with gardens and statuary, and indeed today several inscribed pedestals can still be seen, for example, along Carrer Merceria. The remains of the portico also survive in the buildings of the Antiga Audiència (ancient court of justice: southwest tower with entranceways and staircases), in Plaça del Pallol (entranceway, vault and pilasters of the ancient nunnery), in Plaça de Santiago Rusiñol, in Plaça del Fòrum (angular wall) and in the Praetorium (southeast tower with entranceways, vault and pilasters). This latter structure was substantially altered in the Middle Ages to serve as a castle for the king.