Lecture slides module_7_roman

ARC 110History of Architecture I

Module 7Roman Architecture

Module Outline• Lecture 22

– Historical Background• Location and period • Social characteristics and beliefs

• Lecture 23– Architecture of the Civilization

• Early Influences- The Etruscans• Engineering Innovation and achievements• Roman Buildings

• Lecture 24• Roman Buildings

• Lecture 25• Other architectural elements• Roman city Planning and Design

– Architectural Characteristics• Buildings and other architectural elements• Building materials, construction and technologies• Architectural Organizing principles

Learning Outcomes

• We should expect to learn the following about the civilization – Structural revolution and invention of new

materials– Innovative use of structural solutions in

engineering and buildings structures– The invention of new building types for different

purposes– The invention of functional space in architecture– The use of the orders as decorative elements in

design

Module 7 Lecture 22Roman Architecture

Outline of Lecture

• Lecture 22– Historical Background

• Location and period • Social characteristics and beliefs

Historical Background

Historical BackgroundLocation

• Roman architecture refers to the architecture of Rome and of the Roman Empire

• The Roman Empire was one of the largest early empires in history, stretching from England in Northern Europe to the Ancient Near East and Africa

• The pink area of the Map shows the greatest extent of the Roman Empire

• Rome, located on the Italian peninsula was the capital of the empire

• From the capital, an infrastructure of roads and communication systems was established to connect the whole empire

• Rome is today the capital of Italy

Historical BackgroundPeriod

• The city of Rome was founded in 753 BC.• Roman civilization with Rome as capital

lasted for more than a thousand years. • The history of the civilization can be

divided into three periods; – 753- 510 BC Etruscan Period– 510 – 44 BC Republican Period– 44 BC – 476 A.D. Imperial Period

Historical Background Period- Etruscan Period

• Romans fix the date of the founding Rome at 753 B. C.

• Prior to this date, the Etruscans established an urban culture in the Italian peninsula, which reached the height of its development around 600 B.C.

• They had conquered and established their authority over a loose federation of cities

• Rome at its foundation was a minor city and became a colony of the Etruscans

Historical Background Period- Etruscan Period

• Rome was ruled by Etruscan Kings aided by a popular assembly

• Towards the end of the 6th century B.C., Etruscan power began to decline

• In 509 B.C. Rome revolted against their king and established an independent city state

• Further decline in the power of the Etruscans was accompanied by the rising influence and increasing significance of Rome

Historical Background Period – Republican Period

• After the expulsion of its Etruscan Kings, Rome gradually assumed leadership of a number of settlements for mutual defense

• This gradually led to the expanding influence and dominance of Rome

• By 273 B. C. Rome became the established dominant force in the region

• It conquered its rivals, defeating Cathage in 146 B.C., Macedonia in 168 B. C., Greece in 146 B.C., and Syria in 64 B. C.

• With time Rome also developed a system of Representative government

Historical Background Period – Republican Period

• Rome was government by a body of elected male representatives of the population known as the Senate

• This is why the period is referred to as republican or in other word democratic

• Towards the end of the last millennium B.C. Rome entered into a series of civil wars which brought about the rise of some military dictators, of which Julius Caesar was the most successful.

• This brought about the end of the republican period

Historical Background Period – Imperial Period

• Following a series of civil wars that ended in 27 B.C. Caius Ocatavius, who later took the name Caesar Augustus assumed the title of emperor

• This ushered in the Imperial period of Roman history

• Emperor Augustus undertook a significant reorganization of the Roman Empire

• The golden age of architectural development was witnessed during this period

• He revitalized national life and created new building works


• Augustus was credited with saying that he met Rome a city of brick and left it a city of marble

• Later it was to transform to a city of concrete• The 3rd century A.D. was a period of political

confusion in the Roman Empire• The Barbarian people living in the north of

Europe started attacking the Empire• In 286 A.D. Roman Empire was split into

two; a western empire and an Eastern empire


• Emperor Constantine was able to reunite the Empire again in 324 A.D. and established a new capital for the empire at the city of Byzantium, which he renamed Constantinople

• After his death, the Empire was split again and each had a different destiny

• In 476 A.D. the western empire with its capital at Rome fell after century of attacks by Vandals and Visigoths ending the history of that part

• The Eastern Empire with its capital at Constantinople survived and became the focus of a civilization that lasted until 1453 A.D. when it was sacked by the Ottoman Turks

Historical Background Social Characteristics & Beliefs

• Introduction– The Roman Empire consisted of Rome and all its

conquered provinces– Rome was the capital and focus of the Roman

Civilization– Roman society was made of the Latinized people

living on the Italian peninsula and other foreign people belonging to the conquered provinces

– The society was not homogenous as its puts together people of different origins

– Latin was the widely spoken language, particularly in Rome and its environment

– The Roman people were classified into citizens and non citizens; citizenship can be conferred on non citizens


• Introduction– Citizenship confers the right to vote, make

contracts and have a legal marriage– Citizens are divided into two classes;

members of the Roman Senate belonging to the highest social class and other citizens

– The Roman people were essentially farmers and traders

– Many also aspired to became solders and warriors; being a warrior provided one of the best means of advancing in the society


• Social Life– Roman society had an active social life– The forum was the center of social life; it is

very similar to the Greek Agora– The forum was the place for social, political,

recreational and religious activities– Romans participated in a lot of entertainment

activities


• Social Life– These activities include spectator sports such

as drama, chariot racing, and gladiatorial contest

– They also had new unique social activities such as recreational bathing

– The practice saw Romans going to a public bath at luxurious bathing through chambers of different temperature

– In the process they engaged in both intellectual and physical interaction


• Religious Beliefs– Roman people were not deeply religious, particularly

during the early part of their development– They did not have religious beliefs and mythologies

of their own, but borrowed from societies they come into contact with.

– Contact with other people always resulted in changes to their culture, art and way of life

– Most of their religious beliefs were borrowed from the Greeks, and like the Greeks, they also believed in a number of Gods


• Religious Beliefs– The Romans believed that the faith of their

empire lies in the hands of their various Gods– The state spent money to built temples to the

various gods– Public assemblies, such as senate meetings,

war victories and most state functions were always started with sacrifices to a particular god in his temple

– The religious well being of the individual Roman was his own concern


• System of Government– The System of government in ancient Rome was

democratic– During the Republican period, Government consisted

of two elected consuls, a senate and judiciary– The consuls acted as the executive arm of

government overseeing the activities of the senate, army and other executive institutions such as tax collectors and police

– The senate was an assembly of selected land owners, the upper class of Roman society, who approve budgets and suggest laws


• System of Government– Members of the senate are elected from a

series of lower assemblies who are responsible for enacting the laws suggesting by the senate and also implementing them;

– The judicial branch consist of 6 judges who were elected every two years, who decide punishment for criminals

– During the imperial period, the Consuls were replaced by Emperors who wielded a lot of power


• Roman Architecture– The Environment around Rome was not as rich as

the Greek mainland in construction material especially marble

– Romans construction material consists of Stone, principally local travertine and timber

– Roman also invented a system of firing brick and used brick widely in construction

– Romans were also the first people to discover concrete; Roman concrete is different from our present day concrete

– Romans made significant improvements to the arch to address its shortcoming


• Roman Architecture– They also developed new construction systems

based on the arch and dome– The combination of arch and vault construction with

brick as formwork and concrete as bonding material enabled the Romans to construct great buildings with very large interior spaces

– Roman construction also developed the system of wooden truss construction

– The architecture of Rome has its origin in Hellenistic Greek Architecture and the architecture of the Etruscans

– Most Roman architects were either of Greek origin or Greek trained


• Roman Architecture– The Romans adopted the external language of

classical Greek architecture– In Roman architecture, the orders survived simply as

ornaments applied to great concrete buildings. – But the Romans also made unique additions to the

orders that are very important. – New orders evolved and were added to the Greek

orders to form the classical language of architecture– Romans also made additions in the entablature of

temples, in the scale of buildings and the proportion of the entire design.

– While the Greeks are said to be the inventors of form, Roman architecture concentrated on the creation of space


• Roman Architecture– The Greek and Roman architecture are referred to as

classical architecture– The first book on architecture was produced by

Marcus Vitruvius Pollio in 100 A.D. – The ten books of architecture written sets down rules

and procedures for creating architecture of value– The genius of Roman architecture was expressed not

in the design of a particular building, but in the production of a vast number of various building types

– Roman buildings include bathhouses for bathing, circuses for racing, amphitheatres for gladiatorial contest, temples for religion, domus for family life and the forum as the center of public life and national commerce


• Other Achievements– Other contributions of the Romans include the Roman

alphabets which is widely used in Western and Central European languages and the Roman numerals

– The Roman also introduced the calendar which even thought it has changed several times before assuming its current form has endured to the present day

– The influence of the Roman Empire's is visible in the government, law, and monumental architecture, as well as many other aspects of Western life

– The various contributions of the Roman civilization to modern life has resulted in its classification along with the Greek civilization as Classical civilizations

End of Module 7 Lecture 22

Outline of Lecture

• Lecture 23– Architecture of the Civilization

• Early Influences- The Etruscans• Engineering Innovation and

achievements• Roman Buildings

– Theaters– Amphitheater- Coliseum

Architecture of the Civilization

Roman Architecture Early Influences- The Etruscans

• The Earliest civilization in the region around Rome were the Etruscans

• The Etruscan civilization existed in the northern part of what is now Italy, prior to the formation of the Roman Republic.

• During the 700s BC, the Etruscans developed into a series of autonomous city-states: Rome was a part of these city states

• Knowledge about the Etruscans is fragmentary, and usually filtered through Roman eyes;

• The Etruscans created the first visible civilization in Italy. • They brought sophisticated Eastern and Greek culture to

the region.


• Not much has survived of Etruscan buildings to the present however.

• The temple shown in the image is a reconstruction of a typical Etruscan temple

• The Etruscans introduced another order of architecture

• This order, known as the Tuscan order became popular with the Romans


• The Tuscan order had a simpler base and the shaft was without flutes

• The capital and entablature were also without decoration

• In proportion it is similar to the Doric order with a column that is seven diameters high

• Compared with the other orders, the Tuscan order looks the most solid

Engineering Achievement Introduction

• Romans created what can be referred to as a structural revolution

• This revolution centers on their understanding and use of the arch and vault

• They also discovered the groin vault• Because of this structural revolution, they were able to

span large openings in buildings and other structures with economy and strength

• They were also able to design and construct buildings with large interior spaces

• The revolution also allowed the Romans to construct large engineering structures such as bridges to connect all parts of their empire, and aqueduct to supply water to their cities

Engineering Achievement Structural Innovation- Arches

• The arch was not a new building form, as it had been known by other civilizations including the Egyptians and the Greeks

• But the Romans used it to its fullest potential

• The arch is an organic structure with the elements of the arch resting on each other and transferring load to the column

• It was particularly useful over doors and openings

Engineering Achievement Structural Innovation- Arches

• With an arch, there are no tensile stresses as all the forces are in compression and building stone has enormous compressive strength

• Up to a certain point also, the more an arch is loaded the stronger it becomes

• Arches were used over doors and openings and sometimes, they are built over a lintel to deflect the load to the surrounding walls.

Engineering Achievement Vaults

• Vaults are used to cover an area as a roof

• The simplest of the vaults is the Barrel vault, which is just made up of an arch extended over a certain distance

• It can be adapted to suit different types of plans by making simple modifications to it

• The disadvantage of the vault is that it exerts a continuous load and therefore needs some form of continuous support

• It is also difficult to light the space under a vault except from the ends

• The Romans invented unique ways of overcoming these difficulties


• The cross vault was created from the barrel vault to overcome some of the problems of the ordinary vault

• This is formed by intersecting two barrel-vaults at right angle and is called a “groin vault”

• The weight of the groin vault is concentrated at the corners eliminating the need for continuous support

• The opening of the space in 4 directions means that ample light can be provided to the area below it


• The image shows an example of the use of arches, vaults and groin vaults in a Roman building

• The major limitation of the groin vault is that it is limited to a square plan

• The dome was another structure that was used in roman architecture.

• The Romans used the true dome with its fully rounded perfection

Engineering Achievement Concrete

• The Romans were the first to develop concrete• The concrete developed by the Romans is

different from modern concrete and is made up of lime, sand and water

• Around the 2nd century BC, Pozzolana or volcanic ash was also added

• Concrete did away with the need for stone quarries

• It also did away with the need for the shaping and transportation of stone and for high skilled labor for stonemasonry

Engineering Achievement Concrete

• Concrete has the advantage that it can be cast in any shape and in far larger sizes than the megalithic blocks of stone used in buildings

• With concrete, it was possible to construct monolithic vaults and arches

• Concrete buildings were normally faced with other materials to hide the ugly look of the concrete.

• Fired brick used as formwork was the most popular covering material

Engineering Structures Introduction

• The structural revolution introduced by the Romans enabled them to introduce a variety of new civil structures and building programs never seen before their time

• The ability of the Romans to create large structures enabled them to build significant civil structures including aqueducts, bridges and sewers

• The Romans lived principally in cities and generally cities need a steady supply of fresh water

• Rome itself was projected to have a population of more than a million at the peak of its power

Engineering Structures Introduction

• Arcuated structures or Structures built with arches played a major role in bringing this water to the city

• The technique of arcuated construction was also applied to the construction of bridges

• Rome also had a sanitary system to take away waste water from the city and large warehouses to service the needs of its port

Engineering Structures Road and Bridges

• The Trojan’s Bridge Alexandria is an example of ancient Roman structural achievement

• It is also amongst the most impressive of the surviving Roman bridges

• The bridge consist of tall piers and wide spanning arches

• The central arches are slightly above 27 meters in length

• The roadway is carried 48 meters above the River

• A commemorative arch stands at the center of the Bridge; the commemorative arch bears the name of the architect of the bridge

Engineering Structures Aqueducts

• Aqueducts were used to supply water to Roman cities

• The Pont Du Gard is probably the most magnificent of the Roman aqueducts

• It was constructed around 50 A.D. to supply water to the city of Nimes

• The Aqueduct in some places is almost 50 meters above the deep valley of the River Gard


• It was constructed of 3 tiers of arches


• The Aqua Claudia is also another example of Roman aqueduct

• The Aqua Claudia was one of the eleven aqueducts that supplied Rome with water

• The aqueduct supplies water to Rome over a distance of 66 kilometers

Roman Buildings Introduction

• The focus of Roman building design was on functional spaces

• The Roman people demanded buildings of various functions from the Roman architect

• The architects were able to respond, creating buildings that answer to their functional requirement by providing appropriate interior spaces

• The buildings types include theaters, amphitheaters, basilicas, circuses, basilicas, temples and baths

• All of these buildings were erected within the dense fabric of the city

• We will examine each of these building types

Roman Buildings Theaters

• The Romans adopted the Greek theater transforming it into something Roman

• There was an expansion of the stage and the whole theater was contained within a high-unbroken wall

• The Greek Theater was blended into the landscape

• In contrast, the Roman Theater was an urban form located in a flat city

• The structure of the theater consists of massive structural arcades on piers


• A purely cosmetic layer of trabeation was added to the front

• The trabeation was of the Greek orders and gave scale to the building

• It also creates a rhythm of solids and voids on the elevation

• The three orders of Greek architecture were used on the theater elevation

• Theaters were built in every Roman City


• The Theater was used for acting and drama

• The Theater Marcellus constructed between 23 to 13 B.C. was the first theater constructed in the capital Rome

• It is a good example of a Roman theater

• Access to its banked seat is from the rear, providing access circumferentially

• A stage runs from end to end in front

• The stage is enclosed by a tall wall

Roman Buildings Amphitheater-Introduction

• The amphitheater is a roman structure with no Greek equivalent

• Amphitheatre is a public building used for spectator sports, games and displays

• Apart from function, the important outward distinction between an amphitheatre and a theatre is that amphitheatre is round or oval in shape

• An amphitheater was first built in Pompeii in 80 BC, but the best example of the Roman amphitheater is the colosseum

Amphitheater Coliseum, Rome

• The Colosseum is an amphitheater in Rome

• Its construction began under the Emperor Vespasian in 72 A.D. and was completed in A. D. 80

• It was used for spectator sports including gladiatorial combat

• It is said that 9,000 wild animals were killed in the one hundred inaugural days celebrating its opening

• The Colosseum hosted large-scale spectacular games that included; fights between animals, the killing of prisoners by animals and other executions, naval battles via flooding the arena, and combats between gladiators


• It has been estimated that about 500,000 people died in the Colosseum games

• The colosseum is elliptical in shape

• It measured 48 metres high, 188 metres long, and 156 metres wide

• The wooden arena floor was 86 metres by 54 metres, and covered by sand

• The colosseum had a seating capacity for 50,000 spectators


• The Colosseum was ingeniously designed; most spectacle venues have been influenced by the Colosseum'sstructure into modern times

• The seating formed a uniform elliptical ring capable of supporting the 50,000 spectator capacity of the facility

• The substructure of the amphitheater is very much like that of the theater

• Vaulting was used both radiallyand concentrically to support the structure


• The Colosseum also had a passageway that opens into a tier of seats from below or behind

• Each entrance and exit was numbered, as was each staircase

• The passages quickly dispersed people into their seats and upon conclusion of the event disgorged them with abruptness into the surrounding streets

• Seating was divided into different sections• Above the podium was the maenianum

primum, for the other Roman aristocrats who were not in the senate

• The third level, the maenianum secundum, was divided into three sections

• The lower part, the was for wealthy citizens, while the upper part was for poor citizens

• A third, wooden section was a wooden structure at the very top of the building, added by Domitian


• The most ingenious part of the Colosseum was its cooling system

• It was roofed using a canvas covered net-like structure made of ropes, with a hole in the center

• The Arena where the action takes place is located at the center of the ellipse

• Underneath the arena was the "underground", a network of tunnels and cages where gladiators and animals were held before contests began


• The arena floor no longer exists, and the hypogeum walls and corridors are clearly visible in the ruins of the building

• The orders were used in the elevation in the same manner as on the theater

• The Colosseum was in continuous use until 217, when it was damaged by fire from lightning

• It was restored in 238 and gladiatorial games continued until Christianity gradually put an end to some sports

Outline of Lecture • Lecture 24

• Roman Buildings–Circuses–Bath–Temples–Basilica–Residential Buildings

• Other Elements–Triumphal Arches

Roman Buildings Circuses

• The Romans developed circuses or stadium for horse and chariot racing

• Every city usually had one located close to the forum

• The circuses had stalls at one end where the chariots emerge at the beginning of the race and a track which they race around

• The structure of the circus is very similar to that of theaters and amphitheaters

• Circus Maxima is an example of a Roman Circus

Circuses Circuse Maxentius

• It is located in Rome and is one of the oldest

• It went through a series of transformation over the period of its existence

• The image shown is its final form around 400 A.D.

• Its is 600 meters in length by 200 meters in width

• The circus had 3 tiers of seat, and there are stalls for 12 race houses or chariots

• Each race was of 7 laps covering a distance of about 3.6 kilometers

Roman Buildings Bath

• The Romans had a unique need for exercise, bathing and relaxation and they devised a unique architectural element, the Bath to address that need

• The roman bath was more that just merely swimming or washing

• This practice became so popular that at some point, they took it more serious than their gods

• It was a daily practice of almost all Romans to go to a Bath once a day to relieve stress

Roman Buildings Bath

• The bathing procedure involves a pattern of exposing the body to various levels of heater air and water

• The core program of the bath consist of a disrobing room, the apodyterium, a series of at least two heated rooms, the tepidarium, and a hot room or cauldarium

• Besides the heated rooms, the bath may also have a swimming pool, or natatio for cold plunges on hot summer days or a cool unheated room called the frigidarium

• Bathing also dries the skin so baths also provided rooms with special attendants to oil and towel bathers dry

• Wealthy people and Emperors had private both, but the greatest baths were the public ones built for the populace

Roman Bath Bath of Caracalla

• The bath of caracalla is a good example of a Roman bath and among the best preserved

• The bath is set free standing within a square precinct enclosed by walls

• The precinct has a water reservoir to the south, supplied by an aqueduct to service its water need


• The reservoir is located beneath a stadium used for athletic contest

• The east and west walls have a curved exedra that defines space for cultural activities such as library, music performance, philosophical lectures, etc

• The front wall has a series of shops with the entrance at the center


• The main bath building is rectangular, 225 meters by 115 meters and is situated within the walled precinct

• It has a perfect bilateral symmetry along its north-south axis

• The bath has a large dressing hall, apodyterium at the center of the building


• A swimming pool or Notato is located to the north of it, while a tepidariumand a domed circular cauldarium is located to the south of it, where it is more sunny

• A series of supplementary rooms, including Gymnasium and bathroom suits are arranged symmetrically on two sides of the building

• The structure of the bath of carracallais made up of vaults, arches, groin vaults and domes

• The interior also shows how the Romans have been able to adapt the Greek orders and treatment to arch and vault construction

Roman Buildings Temples

• Temples were a significant part of roman architecture• Scores of temple were built during every period• Most of the roman temples were combination of Etruscan

and Greek prototypes• The typical temple had an axial plan, an entrance porch

with widely space columns in front• The temple also had a cella or sanctuary• The whole temple is raised on a high podium with frontal

steps providing access• A good example of the early form of the temple is seen in

Maison Carree in Nimes• The best preserved of the temples and the one showing

the highest achievement in temple architecture is the Pantheon

Roman Temples Maison Caree, Nimes

• Maison Carree is located in Nimes France

• It was built by the Emperor Agrippa

• The temple shows Greek influence on early roman temples

• The temple is 26.5 meters long, 15.5 meters wide and raised on a podium 3.3 meters high

• It is a temple with 6 Corinthian columns in front, 10 diameters high


• Its podium is three and half times the height of the entablature with 15 access steps in front

• It has an entrance porch that is 3 columns deep

• The temple has a cellathat is one and half times long as its wide


• The walls of the cella have attached half Corinthian columns on its visible three sides

Roman Temples Pantheon

• The Pantheon is the best surviving of all classical buildings

• It is also represents the highest achievement of Roman architecture

• It was built between AD 118 and 128 by the Emperor Handrian on the site of an earlier temple by Agrippa

• It was built as a temple dedicated to all the Roman Gods, hence the name Pantheon


• The Pantheon essentially consist of two parts; the an entrance portico and a circular part or rotunda

• The portico is 8 columns wide and 3 columns deep and leads to the entrance of the temple

• The columns are of unflutedCorinthian order

• The wall of the rotunda is 3 storeys high on the outside; they are made up of brick faced concrete and support the dome roof of the temple


• The interior has eight large niches with one serving as the entrance and the remaining seven used dedicated to the seven major Roman Gods

• The Dome roof forms a perfect sphere with a diameter of 142 feet in the interior


• At the head of the dome is a 30ft wide occulus, that opens up the great dome to the outside and illuminates the space with light

• The interior was built of Egyptian granites, African colored marbles and pure white marbles from the Aegean

• The Pantheon combines scale, boldness and mastery of every architectural art.

Roman Buildings Basilica

• Basilicas are among the most important categories of roman architecture

• There were no basilicas before the Roman era• The basilica are rectangular and usually

contained interior colonnades that divided the space into aisles at one or both sides, with an apse at one end

• The central aisle tended to be wide and was higher than the flanking aisles, so that light could penetrate through the clerestory windows

• The function of the basilica is close to that of the Greek stoa

Roman Buildings Basilica

• It is also the place where magistrates to hold court to dispose of legal matters

• The oldest known basilica, the Basilica Porcia, was built in Rome in 184 BC

• The most splendid Roman basilica is the one constructed for traditional purposes during the reign of the pagan emperor Maxentius and finished by Constantine after 313

• In the early Imperial period, a basilica for large audiences also became a feature of the palaces

• We will examine the Basilica Ulpia and the Basilica Maxentius

Roman Buildings Basilica Ulpia

• The Basilica Ulpia was built by Emperor Trajan in the period A.D 98-117 for his imperial forum

• Basilica Ulpia stretches for 120 meters in length over the width of the Trajan forum

• The Basilica consists of a central hall, 25 meters wide surrounded on all sides by double colonnades

• The Basilica had two semi-circular apses at it’s two ends

Roman Buildings Basilica Ulpia

• The walls of the Basilica were finished with multi-colored marble; also referred to as polychromatic marble

• The whole structure was covered with a truss roof

• Basilica Ulpia represent the generic form of the Roman Basilica,

• It is this form that will later be adopted by the Christians for their church

Roman Buildings Basilica Maxentius

• The Basilica Maxentius was started by the Emperor Maxentius in A.D. 308 but was completed by the Emperor Constantine in A.D. 312

• It is also sometimes referred to as Basilica of Constantine

• It is one of the impressive buildings of the Forum Romanum

• The Basilica Maxentius is different from other tradition basilicas, because its design was derived from the central halls of imperial Roman Baths

Roman Buildings Basilica Maxentius

• It is however larger in scale than any of the baths that was built

• The ground plan covers 100 meters by 65 meters

• The building is divided into a central nave and side isles

• The central nave was 80 by 25 meters and was covered by 3 groin vaults with a maximum height of 35 meters

• The side isles were 16 meters wide, divided into three sections

• There is very little that is left of the Basilica now

Roman Buildings Residential Buildings

• Roman cities had a range of various types of private dwellings

• The private dwellings reflected the rank and wealth of the inhabitants

• At the lowest level are the multi-story tenements where a large proportion of the population stayed

• They consisted of shops on the ground floor and apartments on the upper floors

• The apartments were built around a courtyard for light and air

Roman Buildings Residential Buildings

• The common roman house was the domus

• These were reserved for the more well off members of the Roman society

• The domus was essentially a courtyard house, with a peristyle colonnaded courtyard

• It had few or no windows to the outside

Residential Buildings Domus Augustana

• At the high end are elaborate palaces and villas for the very rich

• The Domus Augustana, also called flavian’spalace, is an example of the high-end residential palaces

• Domus Augustana was both a house for the emperor as well as his palace for official functions

Residential Buildings Domus Augustana

• It was laid out around two peristyle atriums

• The atrium to the left is for state function

• Entry is from an inconspicuous door from the top

• The residential part of the palace is arranged around the courtyard located to the right

• To the right of the residential part is a sunken garden in the form of a stadium

• This is the private garden of the emperor, where he can interact with nature

Residential Buildings Handrians Villa

• Romans also built country villas or houses, where they could go to be close to nature

• A very good example of the country villas, is the Handrian’s villa built for the Emperor Handrian

• The Handrian villa displays an example of the level of wealth displayed in buildings

• This was a large country estate spread on a vast terrain

Residential Buildings Handrians Villa

• The structure was made of a loose arrangement of peristylehalls, fountains, dining halls, dormitories, baths, libraries and other facilities

• The most characteristics feature of the villa is the play of curves and curved form

• This is most evident in the Canopus

• This is an elongated pool surrounded by a colonnade

• The colonnade is topped by alternating straight entablature and segmental arch sections framing statuary

Other Architectural Elements Triumphal Arches

• Other Than buildings, ancient Romans also contributed to the development of several architectural elements

• The most prominent of the elements is the triumphal arch

• A triumphal arch is a structure in the shape of a monumental gate, usually built to celebrate a victory in war

• They are almost always built in the Form, framing the paths that people follow

• Romans started it as a way to celebrate their victories in battles


• Some triumphal arches are made of stone and intended to be permanent.

• A number of arches from the city's imperial era can still be seen in modern Rome.

• Temporary triumphal arches were also constructed for use for celebratory parades or ceremony and later dismantled

• A Roman Triumph was a civil ceremony and religious rite held to publicly honour the military commander of a notably successful foreign war

• Only men of senatorial or consular rank could perform a triumph celebration and be a triumphator as the victorious generals are known


• The ceremony consisted of a spectacular parade, opened by the chiefs of conquered peoples who are afterward executed

• The triumphator rode on a biga, a chariot pulled by two white horses

• The parade followed a precise route in the streets of Rome

• It traveled along the Forum until it reached the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, where the laurels of victory were offered to the god.

• Monuments may then be erected to celebrate the triumph

• Two examples of such monuments in the republican forum are the Arch of Titus and the Arch of Constantine

Triumphal Arches Arch of Constantine

• The arch was built in A.D. 81 and dedicated to the emperor Titus

• It was built to commemorate the military victory over Jerusalem in A.D. 70

• The arch has a height of 15.4 meters, a width of 13.5 meters and was constructed of stone

• The marvel of its stone construction is evident in the keystone, which ensures the stability of the arch


• It has a single opening flanked on each side by attached columns of the Composite order

• The composite order has a capital that joins the acanthus leaves of the Corinthian order with the volutes of the ionic order

• The face of the arch is decorated with sculptural relief depicting the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem


• The arch of Constantine was built much later that than of Titus

• It was built to commemorate the victory of Emperor Constantine over Maxentius in A.D. 312

• Its form shows an attempt to create an arch more majestic than that of Titus


• It has three arched openings, a larger one in the center flanked by two smaller ones

• There are four free standing columns in front framing the arched openings

• It is also abundantly decorated, depicting the victory in relief sculpture

Outline of Lecture

• Lecture 25– Roman City Planning and Design– Architectural Characteristics

• Buildings and other architectural elements• Building materials, construction and

technologies• Architectural Organizing principles

Roman City Planning & Design Principles

• Roman cities fall into two broad categories

• Majority grew in an unplanned manner over the centuries forming complex organic entities, to which sometimes order was introduced

• Rome is a good example


• The other category consist of Castrum type cities, a type of military camp developed with an inflexible regularity of shape-

• A well preserved example is the city of Timgad in North Africa

• This was a city laid out by Trajan in A.D. 100 as a colony for military veterans

• The town was laid in a grid of 12 blocks within a square 1,200 feet wide


• The planning of most cities fall in between the two extremes of organic growth and rigid grid planning

• All cities had a forum, theater, bath, market etc. • Many of the cities contained buildings that were copies or

local versions of key monuments in Rome• Focus in city design is on integrating civic buildings with

public spaces and residential neighborhoods • Each public building had interior spaces that responded

to functional requirement with the spaces also linked and connected with the public spaces of the city

• The Forum was the center of the Roman city

Roman City Planning & DesignForum

• The forum was the descendant of the Greek agora for the Romans

• It began as a market place• It rapidly became the commercial, political and

ceremonial center of the civilization• In the process it developed into an elaborate

architectural space that became a part of all roman cities• Unlike the Greek agora which is informal in plan, and

whose buildings are subordinate to the space, in the roman forum, the organization is more formal

• The buildings surrounding it are normally large and dominate the space

• Buildings commonly found in the forum include temples, basilicas, and bath

Roman City Planning & DesignForum

• Each individual major building in the forum was given a central inside space

• Governmental function were usually arranged on the West End; religious ceremonies were celebrated at the east end

• The inside space of buildings was connected to one or more exterior space of the city

• Columns, statues and triumphal arches were erected as a memorial to the conquering rulers and to the glories of the empire

• No two roman forums are really alike, as there are always differences between the forums in different cities

• In Rome with its two forums, we find a good example of the Roman forums

Roman City Planning & DesignRepubliclan Forum

• The Republican Forum is also called the Forum Romanum

• It was the oldest and most important forum in the city

• Soon it became an important market place

• By the 5th Century B.C. the various functions associated with the forum began to assume their architectural shape

Roman City Planning & DesignRepublican Forum

• Additions, modification and growth by successive republicans and emperors led to its development

• By 400 A.D. the forum had accumulated not less than 10 temples, 4 basilicas, 4 triumphal arches and many other monuments and shrines

• All of these were arranged with no preordained order

• The buildings therefore loosely define the space of the forum

Roman City Planning & DesignImperial Forum

• During the reign of Julius Ceasar, he attempted to reorganize the Republican forum but realized that it had become too congested for rational order

• He therefore decided to build a new forum adjacent to but outside the republican forum

• This idea was picked by successive emperors, who added to it to create the imperial forum

Roman City Planning & DesignImperial Forum

• The imperial forum is not one forum, but five forums with each supporting the other

• There was variety in their form, but they displayed rational order in their organization

• Each of the forum consisted of colonnaded atrium with a temple at its head

• Of the five temples that of Trojan was most majestic, with the basilica Ulpia sitting across it and two libraries on either side of the central court

Roman City Planning & DesignArchitecture and Urban Design in Rome

• In Rome we find the best example of both Roman architecture and city design

• The image shows a reconstruction module of a part of Rome at the height of its development

• From the image, the organic growth of the city is evident and is reflected in the fabric of the city

• Buildings are densely packed together, separated by a network of narrow pathways

Roman City Planning & DesignArchitecture and Urban Design in Rome

• Within the fabric, all the Roman building types can be identified

• These include The circus Maxentius, The DomusAugustana, Roman Theater, An Aqueduct, A Roman Temple, The Basilica Maxentius, and The Republican and Imperial Forums

• From the image, the clustering of important buildings close to the forum is highly evident

Architectural Characteristics

Buildings & Other Arch Elements

Buildings & Other Arch. Elements Building Types

• The genius of the roman architect was not in the design of a particular building

• Rather, it is in the way they were able to meet the needs of a complex society for different building types for a thousand years

• They produced a wide range of buildings that had never been built before

• Roman buildings included bathhouses for bathing, circuses for races, amphitheaters for gladiatorial contest, temples for religion, domus for family life and the forum as the center of public life

• Roman architects design the buildings with interior spaces configured for specialized activities

• The Greek order was reduced to a decorative element rather than as a form generator in Greek Architecture

Buildings & Other Arch. ElementsEngineering Structures

• Romans also contributed several engineering and architectural objects to human civilization

• The most prominent engineering contributions are in road and bridge structures and in the construction of aqueducts

• Road and bridge construction allowed the Romans to connect the various parts of their empire

• Aqueducts allowed them to supply their cities with water

Buildings & Other Arch. ElementsThe Orders

• Romans also contributed to the development of the orders

• They made the Tuscan order developed by the Etruscan very popular in use

• They developed the composite order, which combines Corinthian and Ionic capitals

• They developed the giant order which spans up to two storey and the miniature order used to decorate windows

• The Romans also contributed in the development of the Triumphal arches

• Triumphal arches were constructed in Roman cities to celebrate victories in battles

Materials, Const. & Tech.

Materials, Construction & Tech. Materials

• The choice of building materials contributed to the success of Roman architecture.

• Roman building materials were very diverse and rich• Materials that were not available locally could usually be

imported from other Roman colonies • Roman building materials included stone, marble, brick,

and timber• The art of producing fired brick was a Roman invention • Romans also invented concrete• The combination of concrete and brick formwork enabled

Roman architects to design and vast buildings for different uses

Materials, Construction & Tech. Construction

• The Roman Civilization had the most innovative construction system of the civilizations so far studied

• Roman architects understood the underlying principles of arch and vault construction and were able to innovate to address their shortcomings

• The combination of arch and vault construction with concrete and fire brick formwork provided the Romans with the technology to achieve their architectural dreams

• No previous civilization had an architecture that involved the manipulation of space like that of the Romans

Materials, Construction & Tech. Construction

• In fact, roman architecture was essentially space shaped by vaults, and walls for the purpose of ordered activities

• In terms of building technology, the contribution of the Romans includes the development of the arch and barrel vault on freestanding piers.

• Romans also introduced the use of timber trusses in roofing

• In the Pantheon, we find Roman construction technology at the height of its application

Materials, Construction & Tech. Technology

• The greatest contribution of the Romans in Building services and technology is in the aspect of water

• The development of the aqueduct enabled ancient Romans to supply water to their cities

• Rome at the height of its development had to supply water to meet the needs of its one million inhabitants

• Along with water supply, the Romans developed a system of waste water collection and disposal

• Sanitary sewers were used to collect waste water that is channeled outside the city for disposal

Principles of Arch. Organization

Principles of Arch. Organization Principles

• Three forces appear to shape the direction and form of Roman architecture– Function– Construction Technology– Adaptation to new ideas and knowledge

Principles of Arch. Organization Function

• The principal organizing principle of Roman buildings is function

• Function is evident in the emphasis on spaces• Almost all Roman buildings provided spaces for

functional use• Roman architecture also de-emphasized the

rigidness in the use of the Greek orders• They transformed the orders from a determinant

of building form to decoration on gigantic buildings

Principles of Arch. Organization Construction Technology

• Understanding Roman buildings also requires understanding their construction technology

• Development in construction technology freed the Romans from any creative limitations

• They were therefore able to experiment, in the process creating new building types and form and also pushing the limits of structural possibilities

• Construction technology also allowed Roman architects to produce buildings with vast interior spaces

• Construction technology enabled Romans to transform the orders from structural elements to mere decorative ones

Principles of Arch. Organization Adaptation to New Ideas and Knowledge

• Roman architecture can also only be understood by understanding the Roman attitude to innovation

• Romans were constantly in contact with different people and places

• As they come into contact the different people and places, they are also exposed to different ideas and ways of doing things

• Roman people were always willing to lean new ideas and knowledge and adapt these for their use

Principles of Arch. Organization Adaptation to New Ideas and Knowledge

• Such adaptation allowed them to assimilate ideas from different places, including the Greeks, the Egyptians and the Carthaginians

• But when Roman people learn new ideas and knowledge, they were also able to adapt them and create ideas that were uniquely Roman

• It is this will to learn and adapt that led to their innovative social life and to the evolution of Roman architecture

Lecture slides module_7_roman

Education

Transcript of Lecture slides module_7_roman