Tarraco, as capital of the province of Hispania Citerior since Augustan times, had two forums at the end of the 1st century AD. One was reserved for the Provincial Council and was situated in the upper part of the city, and the other, which dealt with local affairs, was in the lower part, near the theatre and the port.

Construction of the Provincial Forum, on the upper part of the hill on which Tarragona is built, began around 70 AD. It consisted of two large squares at different levels. In the lower part of the complex there was a large building for performances, the Circus.

The vast scale of this monumental construction makes it difficult for us to say what occupied the site prior to this time. We believe, however, that there were few buildings and that from Roman times the land was mainly used for military purposes.

The upper plaza was the worship area. It was rectangular (153 x 136 metres) and on three of its sides it had a portico with windows on the exterior. On the upper part of the porticos there were attics decorated with a series of coats of arms (clipei) representing Jupiter-Ammon and the Medusa, some examples of which can be seen in this room. In the upper portico there was a large hall.

The worship area of the Forum was presided over by a temple dedicated to the imperial provincial cult. No parts of this building have been found in situ. The only remains we have are fragments of frieze decorated with garlands, ox skulls and various items used in sacrifices. Some of these fragments can been seen in this room.

Other elements that can be seen here include the Corinthian capital and the compound capital, which may have been part of the portico, and the fragment of cornice and the frieze with acanthus rolls and plant motifs, also belonging to the worship area.

The second terrace, known as the Plaza of Representation, covered an area of 175 x 318 metres. It had two towers at each of its southern corners through which pedestrians entered the Circus.

These remains provide us with some information about the characteristics of the area, its outer perimeter and the complex structure that surrounded it, at least on three of its sides. We have no knowledge, however, of the architectural characteristics of the administrative buildings (the central archive or tabularium, the seat of the governor or praetorium consulare and the provincial treasury or arca provinciae Hispaniae citerioris, amongst others).

The centre of the plaza was probably a garden and contained the statues of the provincial elite. We know this from the large number of inscribed pedestals, that served as bases for the statues, found in this area.