The Agora was the heart of ancient Cyrene, serving as a public square, a forum for orators, a market and a magnet for the powerful people of the day. Many civic and religious buildings were clustered around the agora. Many still bear the traces of Roman influence, superimposed onto the fine monumental constructions begun by the Greeks. During the reign of Septimius Severus (r AD 193-211), porticoes were added.
