ANCIENT ROMAN

ARCHITECTURE

ANCIENT ROMAN ARCHITECTURE

It developed different aspects of
Ancient Greek architectureand newer technologies
such as the arch and the dome to make a new
architecturalstyle.

Itflourished throughout theEmpireduring the

Pax Romana.

Its use of new materials, particularly concrete, was

a very important feature.

Roman Architecture covers the period from the

establishment of theRoman Republicin 509 BC to
about the 4th century AD, after which it becomes
reclassified asLate AntiqueorByzantine architecture.

the style used in Western Europe beginning about

TheRoman Empireat its greatest

extent, in the reign ofTrajan, 117 AD

TheColosseumin Rome, Italy

An area at theOstia Anticaarchaeological

site: at one time, shops were located here

Background

Factors such as wealth and high population

densities in cities forced the ancient Romans to
discover new architectural solutions of their own.
The use ofvaultsandarches, together with a
sound knowledge of building materials, enabled
them to achieve unprecedented successes in the
construction of imposing structures for public
use.
Examples include theaqueducts of Rome, the
Baths of Diocletianand theBaths of Caracalla,
thebasilicasandColosseum.

Roman Aqueduct

The multiple arches of thePont du GardinRoman Gaul(modern-day

southernFrance). The upper tier encloses an aqueduct that carried water
toNimesin Roman times; its lower tier was expanded in the 1740s to

Rome's Porta Maggiore, formed by a supporting arch of theAqua Claudia

and Rome's highest elevated aqueduct, the AquaAnio Novus.

The Basilicas

Remains of theBasilica of Maxentiusand Constantine in Rome.

The building's northern aisle is all that remains.

The baths of Diocletian

The basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei

Martiri, built in the remains of the baths.

Baths of Caracalla

Rom Caracalla-Thermen von Sden

The Colosseum

Influences

TheRomanswere indebted to theirEtruscan

neighbors and forefathers who supplied them with
a wealth of knowledge essential for future
architectural solutions, such as the use ofhydraulics
and the construction of arches.
The Romans absorbed Greek Architectural
influence both directly (e.g.Magna Graecia) and
indirectly (e.g. Etruscan Architecture was itself
influenced by the Greeks). Example: Triclinium.
The Romans were also known to employ Greek
craftsmen and engineers to construct Roman
buildings.

Reproduction of a triclinium.

The RomanPantheonwas thelargest dome in the world

for more than a millennium.It is the largest
unreinforced solid concrete dome to this day

Architectural features

The Roman use of thearchand their improvements in

the use ofconcreteand bricks facilitated the building of
the manyaqueductsthroughout theempire, such as the
Aqueduct of Segoviaand the eleven aqueducts in Rome
itself, including theAqua ClaudiaandAnio Novus.
Thedomepermitted construction ofvaulted ceilings
without crossbeams and made possible large covered
public space such aspublic bathsandbasilicas.
The Romans based much of theirarchitectureon the
dome, such as Hadrian'sPantheonin the city of Rome,
theBaths of Diocletianand theBaths of Caracalla.

Domes

The Romans were the first builders in the

history of architectureto realize the potential
ofdomesfor the creation of large and welldefined interior spaces.
Domes were introduced in a number of Roman
building types such astemples,thermae,
palaces,mausoleaand later alsochurches.
Half-domes also became a favored architectural
element and were adopted asapsesin
Christiansacred architecture.

Dome of thePantheon,
inner view

Mosaics

Themosaic is a decoration made of colorful chips

of stone inserted into cement.
There were two main techniques in Greco-Roman
mosaic:opus vermiculatumused tinytesserae,
typically cubes of 4 millimeters or less, and was
produced in workshops in relatively small panels
which were transported to the site glued to some
temporary support.
A specific genre of Roman mosaic obtained the
nameasaroton. It represented an optical illusion of
the leftovers from a feast on the floor of reach
houses

Hypocaust

Ahypocaustwas an ancient Roman system of

under floor heating, used to heat houses with hot air.
Hypocausts were used for heating hot baths (
thermae), houses and other buildings, whether
public or private.
The floor was raised above the ground by pillars,
calledpilae stacks, with a layer of tiles, then a layer
of concrete, then another of tiles on top; and spaces
were left inside the walls so that hot air and smoke
from thefurnacewould pass through these enclosed
areas and out of flues in the roof, thereby heating
but not polluting the interior of the room.

Roman roofs

The largesttrussroof by span of Ancient Rome

covered theAula Regia(throne room) built for
emperorDomitian(8196AD) on the
Palatine Hill, Rome.
InSicilytruss roofs presumably appeared as
early as 550 BC.[15]Their potential was fully
realized in theRomanperiod, which saw
trussed roofs over 30 wide spanning the
rectangular spaces of monumental public
buildings such astemples,basilicas, and later
churches.

Spiral stairs

Thespiral stairis a type ofstairway

which, due to its complexhelical
structure, was introduced relatively late
into architecture.
Apart from thetriumphal columnsin the
imperial cities ofRomeand
Constantinople, other types of buildings
such astemples,thermae,basilicasand
tombs were also fitted with spiral
stairways.