Written Assignment Unit 7: Concrete and arches in ancient Rome

University of the People

HIST 1421: GREEK AND ROMAN CIVILIZATION

October 22, 2020

 Concrete and arches in ancient Rome
Roman architecture was vastly different from the building style of the surrounding countries and

territories, mostly due to two factors: their use of Concrete and development of arches. While

most of the Rome’s neighbors (Such as the Greeks, Persians and Egyptians) had large and

impressive buildings, those buildings were only impressive on the outside. Because of the way

they were built; using heavy materials that needed a lot of support in order for the buildings not

to collapse. The Romans, however, realized that the interior of the building was just as important

as the exterior and decided to experiment with the way they were building. (Ambler, 2015)

Introducing concrete

According to Ambler (2015) “Roman concrete (opus caementicium), was developed early in the

2nd c. BCE” (para. 6) and was widely used in many of the Roman buildings as it was weather

resistant and could be used to create many shapes as it took the form of the mold it was poured

into.

Concrete was a strong building material that could withstand severe and prolonged weather,

thanks to the volcanic ash used in its construction (Concerning Reality, 2019). That meant the

many of the buildings the Romans have built lasted far longer than their counterparts in places

that did not use Roman concrete. Many of these buildings are still intact and preserved in their

original form today! Roman concrete could also be used underwater, which allowed the romans

to build large bridges over bodies of water, and allowed passage not only for people but also for

boats.
Although it was an important part of the Roman buildings, concrete by itself was not considered

a pretty material and it was often covered with bricks or tiles to make it look more appealing to

the eye. (Ambler, 2015)

Arches

The Roman arch was what made their buildings stand out, as the arch could withstand an

enormous amount of pressure and weight that has never been seen before. The arch essentially

supports itself, it does not need reinforcement.

The arch played a very important part in the roman architecture as its strength and form allowed

the architects to focus on the interior of the buildings and make far greater use of the inside

space, as they no longer needed to worry about using it to support the buildings foundations. The

arch was also used in the construction of bridges, that now not only allowed people to pass over

the top of the river, but for boats to keep using the river at the same time. (Concerning Reality,

2019). The arch was also used in Rome’s raised aqueducts, which provided the city with fresh

clean water, raising the sanitation standards and improving the Roman’s quality of life.

Conclusion

While the romans did not use arches or concrete exclusively; the use of marble and post-and-

lintel buildings were still abundant, these two Roman innovations were something that made

them stand out, not only in ancient times, but also today. Many old Roman buildings still stand

today while many others from the same period that were not built using Roman architecture have

crumbled into dust and arches and concrete are still prevalent in many of our modern buildings.

Word count: 536 words

References:

Ambler, J. L. (2015, August 8). An introduction to ancient Roman

architecture. Smarthistory. Retrieved from: https://smarthistory.org/roman-architecture/

Concerning Reality. (2019, January 2). The impressive engineering of the Roman arch [Video]

Retrieved from: https://youtu.be/HBuy176w9wY