Macellum

The macellum (plural: macella) was a Roman marketplace, typically referring specifically to a marketplace that dealt with fresh foods such as meats and produce. The etymology of the word is not completely clear. It may be derived from the Latin mactare, of which one meaning is interpreted as an honoring of the gods, perhaps through the sacrifice of an animal.  It may also be a loan word from Greek. Macella typically (but not always) seem to have taken the form of a series of stalls arranged around a quadrangular courtyard with a circular roofed structure similar to a tholos at the center. The central structure is theorized to have served as the fish market area of the macellum or perhaps a drainage area in which excess organic matter from the market was disposed.