<p>The Tarpeian Rock, also known as <i>rupes Tarpeia</i>, was a steep cliff on the *Arx from which convicted criminals were thrown to their deaths (e.g., Varro, <i>Ling</i>. 5.41: ... <i>eius rupes Tarpeium appellatur saxum</i>; Tac., <i>Ann</i>. 6.19: ... <i>et saxo Tarpeio deicitur</i>). As noted by Wiseman (<i>LTUR</i>), the sources specify that this well-known landmark was connected with the Arx and overlooked the *Forum Romanum. Wiseman outlines the changing history of its location by topographers: in the 16th and 17th c., it was located on the W *Capitol overlooking the *Theater of Marcellus; in 1819 Dureau de la Malle placed it on the SE Capitol overlooking Piazza della Consolazione (still held by Rodríguez Almeida, Richardson, Wellesley). In 1978 Wiseman proposed the SE summit of the Arx, and this is now the standard view (Reusser, Ziolkowski, Patterson); Coarelli argues that the Saxum Tarpeium, the *Carcer, and other nearby features comprised a well-defined topography of capital punishment. Due to landslides and erosion, its original appearance is no longer to be seen.</p>