That building burned down in 52 BC when the supporters of the murdered Publius Clodius Pulcher used it as a pyre to cremate his body.

There may have been a small shrine to the god Vulcan from the earliest period, a stone altar with a marble stele inscribed with a dedication from a Latin king.

This spot was separated from the rest of the comitium with a low rising concrete fence to keep pedestrians from walking atop it.

[3] It is believed that the circular set of stairs of the Comitium, which also doubled as seating for citizens listening to speakers at the Rostra, led up to the Curia's entrance.

The building was destroyed in 52 BC after the makeshift funeral fire for Publius Clodius Pulcher ignited the structure, burning it to the ground.

This structure was in turn replaced by the Curia Julia started by Julius Caesar and finished by Emperor Augustus.