Roman Architecture

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Roman Architecture
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Introduction

• Roman culture combined different influences
• Influenced by several primitive cultures from the
  area in which Rome was founded (they were
  peasants, warriors, brigands and pirates)
• From the Etruscan civilization urban,
  engineering and technology
• From the Greeks they aimed to imitate much of
  this model of society

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Introduction

• Results
• From Italian origins
• Practical sense (functionalism)
• Military expansion (imperialism)
• From Etruscan origins
• Technology
• Engineering
• From Greek origins
• Philosophy
• Literature
• Art

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Introduction

• General characteristics of Roman Art and
  Architecture
• It is practical and utilitarian
• Focused on public works and engineering
• Monumental to show Roman power
• Great technical advances
• It is commemorative and propagandistic

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General Characteristics

• Building systems
• Lintelled
• Copied from the Greeks
• Spaces are closed by straight lines
• Vaulted
• Taken from the Etruscan
• Use of Arches and Barrel Vault
• Use of Domes
• Strong walls so that they do not use external
  supports

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General Characteristics

• Materials
• Limestone
• Concrete
• Mortar
• Arches
• They used half point or semicircular arches
• Lintels could be used above these arches

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General Characteristics

• Greek Architectural orders Doric, Ionic and
  Corinthian, were used more in a
  decorative than practical manner.
• Romans used two more orders
• Composite
• Tuscan

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Roman Town Planning

• Cities were the center of Roman life
  Infrastructure was necessary
• Water and sewer systems
• Transport and defense
• Public spaces and markets
• Psychological effect power and control
• Linking cities through paved roads was essential
  to further assert Roman power

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Roman Town Planning

• The plan of the city was based on Roman military
  camps.
• It had two main axes
• Cardo N-S
• Decumanus E-W
• The intersection of these two main streets was
  the Forum
• The rest of the space was divided into squares
  called insulae or city blocks.

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Roman Town Planning

• The most important part of the city was the
  Forum, where political, economic, administrative,
  social and religious activity were centered.
• Main buildings were in this Forum
• In big cities there were theaters, circuses, and
  amphitheaters.

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Paved Roads

• Paved roads were needed to reach to any point of
  the empire
• They facilitated both communication and political
  control

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Paved Roads

• The roads were made with strong foundations
• Different materials were put into different
  layers
• To measure the distance they created Milliarium
  or stones located in the sides

Section of a Roman paved road
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Paved Roads

• The roads were not completely flat
• They consisted of several layers
• The central and highest was the most important,
  it was convex to conduct the water to the ditches
  that were built in the sides

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Bridges

• Roman engineers were true masters of building
  bridges, since they were essential to reaching
  places and cities often situated at the bank of
  rivers.
• They were created for defensive and
  infrastructural reasons, and
• are characterized by
• Arches and Rectangular pillars as their bases.

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Aqueducts

• Aqueducts were used to bring water to cities.
• The were built in order to get water from its
  source around geographic irregularities such as
  hills, mountains and valleys between rivers and
  towns.
• Not only valleys were crossed by aqueducts, but
  mountains were excavated by long tunnels as well.

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Walls

• Walls were important to protect the city and its
  citizens from invaders, and they went all the way
  around the city.
• Hadrian's Wall is the most famous of these
  fortified walls. Standing at the Northern border
  of the Empire in Britannia (northern England), it
  was 72 miles long, parts of it still stand in
  Northern England today.
• It took only 5 years to build

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Forum

• Forums were cultural centers in cities, usually
  placed at the crossroads of the cardo maximus and
  decumanus.
• Temples for worship, schools, basilicae, markets
  or even termae had direct access through Forum.
• In many cases even buildings for spectacles
  -circus, theaters and amphitheaters- were
  accessed through the forum

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Types of Roman Architecture

• Religious buildings temples
• Civil buildings
• Public basilicas, baths
• Spectacles theater, amphitheater, circus
• Commemorative Triumphal arch, column
• Domestic Insulae, Domus, Villae, Palace
• Funerary Tombs
• Engineering works
• Bridges
• Aqueducts
• Roads

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Religious Temple

• It copied the Greek model
• It has only one portico and a main façade
• Instead of having stairs all around, it only has
  them in the main façade

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Religious Temple

• Other types of temples
• Circular similar to the Greek tholos, but with a
  Dome
• The Pantheon combined square and circular
  structures and was in honor of all gods.

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Civil Buildings Basilica

• The Basilica in the Ancient world was where the
  court of justice was housed.
• It is rectangular and has different naves
• The central nave is higher than the others.
• The building ends in an apse.
• The nave is covered with vaults.

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Civil Buildings Baths

• Public Space that consisted of different rooms
• Different temperature rooms
• Frigidarium (cold)
• Tepidarium (warm)
• Caldarium (hot)
• Swimming pool
• Gymnasium
• Library
• Changing rooms

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Caracallas Bath House
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Spectacles Theater

• It is similar to the Greek Theater.
• It has a semicircular shape
• The doors are called vomitoria

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Meridas Roman Theatre
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Spectacles Amphitheater

• The design is based on the fusion of two theaters
• Spectacles such as public executions, fighting
  animals and man to man fights (gladiators) were
  held here
• The Coliseum could also be filled with water for
  naval battles.

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• The Coliseum was built in 8 years (72-80 AD) and
  was 160 feet tall.
• It had a capacity of 70,000 people our modern
  stadiums are based on it

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Spectacles Amphitheater

• Velarium - This was a retractable awning that
  shaded the amphitheaters spectators from sun and
  was operated by members of the Roman Navy

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Spectacles Circus

• It was a racetrack for horse races and quadriga
  competitions.
• It has the spina in the center, that was a large
  barrier with monuments on top of it.

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Commemorative monuments Triumphal Arches

• Arches commemorated Roman victories or military
  generals
• Triumphal Arches were monuments that were usually
  placed at the main entrance of a city in order to
  remind travelers and city residents of the
  greatness and strength of the Roman Empire.
• They also marked borders of provinces.
• At first they were wooden arches where trophies
  from wars were displayed.
• Then Romans built concrete commemorative arches
  with inscriptions many still stand today.

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Commemorative monuments Columns

• Commemorative Columns were decorated with relief
  sculptures, some of which included historical
  facts, and were built to honor a person.
• The most famous example of these is Trajan's
  Column in Rome. It is decorated with a spiral of
  reliefs telling the story of his victory over
  Dacia (modern day Romania).

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Houses Insulae

• Insulae were urban houses
• In order to best use the vertical space in
  cities, buildings up to four floors high were
  constructed.
• The ground floor was for shops -tabernae- and
  the upper floors were for apartments of different
  sizes.
• Every residence was connected through a central
  patio decorated with flowers or gardens.

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Houses Domus

• Domus were usually housing for important people
  in each city.
• It was usually made up of a collection of rooms
  set around a central hall or atrium, with a
  garden and courtyard.
• There were few windows. Light came from the
  atrium instead.
• Up to 8 Domus could fit on a city block

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Houses Villa

• Houses far from cities, were either for
  agricultural purposes -villae rustica-, or as
  homes for other important and wealthy people
  -villae urbana-.
• A villae urbana had every comfort, as well as
  gardens and splendid views.
• Villae rustica had stables, cellars, stores and
  orchards apart from the living quarters.

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Palaces

• The palace was the residence of the emperor
• Palaces were large and had many rooms.

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Palace at Splitz