corn to Rome; however, till the city became dependent on Egypt in the imperial age, the East was not
often drawn on. Private merchants were responsible for the transfer of corn to Rome, but the Senate
must have kept an eye on the situation. Most other basic raw materials, such as wood, were available in
Italy, though the mines of Spain were important, and those of Macedon were soon reopened.
Agora Of The Italians On Delos. Built with endowments from several private benefactors in the late
second century B.C., this building served as the social and business centre of the Italian community in
the Aegean's greatest slave-market. In the foreground, two columns of the portico which surrounded the
central court have been reconstructed; behind lies part of an entablature inscribed with the names of the
original sponsors.