ROMAN ARCHITECTURE
By Ezepue Don Dubem
Brief History
Roman Architecture is the
Architectural style of the Romans/Roman Empire and it existed from the rise of
the empire in 509BC till about the 4th century after it became reclassified as the late
Antique or Byzantine Architecture following the fall of the Roman Empire. The
Romans share a lot of ancestry with the Etruscans. The Romans fought their
oppressors, the Gaul’s and after their victory they began to spread outward
conquering cities in their path.
Building Types
Residential Buildings
The Romans built multi-story apartment
buildings called Insulae for
the Commoners (Plebes).
The Romans also had elaborate, massive and
beautiful house for those of higher social status called Domus (single family
residence). The Romans believed more in convenience and thought of luxury as
being morally wrong, or as squandering of wealth thus making Domus rare.
Another type of housing structure was a
Cenaculum. It was an apartment divided into three individual rooms.
Public Buildings
The common public building types include:
1. The Thermae - it was a popular facility for
public bathing, exercising and socializing. Bath house were also designed in
private villas, town house and forts. Their design made use of water supply
from nearby rivers streams or aqueduct and had an under floor heating system.
These Thermaes were some of the public hygiene buildings built by the Romans
another was latrines.
2.
The
Amphitheatres - it was used for gladiatorial contest, public displays, public
meetings and bull fights. An example was the Colosseum in Rome.
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| Colosseum in Rome |
3.
The Forum - a very large space in the centre
of cities used as a market place, gathering place of great social significance,
the setting for political discussion and debates, rendezvous meetings etc. Example:
The Forum Trajanum in Rome Italy.
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| The Forum Trajanum in Rome Italy |
4.
The
Lighthouse - The light was provided b a fire at the top. Example was The Tower
of Hercules
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| The Tower of Hercules |
5.
Basilica -
They served administrative functions it acted like a town hall or court house.
Example is The Basilica ulpia built by Emperor Trajan.
6.
Temples -
They served as a place of worship of their gods, space for celebration of public
cults. Example is The Maison Carree in Nimes France.
Influences on the Roman Architecture
The major influences on The Roman Architecture
came for The Greeks and The Etruscans.
The influence from the Etruscans was a result
of their shared ancestry. Hence the Romans first adopted the arch from the
Etruscans and the hydraulics solution in construction of arches but the use of
arches that spring directly from tops of columns was a Roman development
The influence from the Greeks was a result of
the uniqueness of features of Greek architecture at the time and the many Greek
artists who migrated to Rome and designed homes of prominent citizens at the
rise of the empire. The Romans absorbed the Greeks but were not restricted by
the Greek aesthetic axioms. The Romans modified the Grecian Doric b adding a separate
base and more ornamentation. Unlike the Greeks Temples the Roman Temples were
small and varied in structure, they were raised on high podiums having
staircase in front. The Romans incorporated the Greek use of columns on the
temple facade but designed theirs to be on all sides and also incorporated the
triangular pediment. The Romans modelled their permanent theatres after the
Greeks but built the stage building one story higher and turned the orchestra
pit into seats because Romans did not require a chorus. The word 'basilica' is
a Greek word meaning 'Royal'.
Characteristics of Roman Architecture
The Romans intended that their structures be
built to impress, the focused more on Monumental Architecture whereas The
Greeks focused on Temple Architecture. They were credited for the development
of hemispherical arches, Vaults, barrel vaults, groin vaults and domes; they
were also characterised by these features. The used arches for the construction
of Aqueducts to supply water to cities example: aqueduct of Segovia, Aqua
Claudia, Aqua Novus etc, and construction of Bridges example: Pont Julian.
Domes were used for the construction of public baths example Hadrian’s
Pantheon, bath of Diocletian, Bath of Caracalla, and construction of Basilicas
etc.
The Roman built with tile, bricks, stone,
marble (originally imported from Greece till a deposit was found in Rome) and
concrete. The Romans were also credited for the discovery of concrete, which
was perfected by roman architects as a mixture of lime, mortar, sand with stone
rubble, pozzolana, and water forming a slurry liquid that eventually hardens
into solid used to support great loads. The Greeks were limited to structures
made from square or rectangular bricks as but with the use of concrete The Romans
overcame this limitation.
The Romans expanded the Greek column designs
by adding the Composite (inspired by the volute of the Ionic and acanthus
leaves Corinthian column) and The Tuscan (a similar design with rings around
its base and top).
REFERENCE
-Roman
Power / Roman Architecture http://employees.oneonta.edu/farberas/arth/arth200/politics/roman_architecture.html
-Greek
Influence of Roman Architecture
By
Kara Rae, eHow Contributor
-Distinguishing
Classical Greek from Classical Roman Architecture. The Classicalist
By CHRISTIE BERNARD
-Differentiating
Greek and Roman Architecture – The Best of Both Empires. The Classicalist
By
CHRISTIE BERNARD
-
The Influence of the Roman Arch
http://www.eduplace.com/kids/socsci/ca/books/bkf3/writing/06_romarch.pdf
- Greek Architecture Influences
America’s Architecture
https://scholar.vt.edu/access/content/user/tmcasey/Portfolio%20Resources/Greek%20and%20Roman%20Architectural%20Influences%20in%20America.pdf
-
Wikipedea
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Roman_architecture
