Classical Civilization - Rome

Rome started around 753 B.C.E..  Rome carried many influences from Greece, since Greece was started as early as 3000 B.C.E. .

Roman art and designs started with many inspiration of Greek design.  There are many similarity to what we have learned in previous Greek lecture.  What makes Roman art and design special is that, they just did not settle with what they already had.  Many people define ancient roman as "inventor".


What amazed me the most from learning ancient Roman design and architecture, their discovery and use of arch.  Precedents were from Greek, they were used to use column and post-and-lintel construction.  I am not sure how long and how many testing that they took to achieve their invention.  Other civilization had arch and they did not explore the possibility, including Greece.  When arch is projected in 3D, it becomes barrel vault. When it's rotated around a single point, it becomes a dome.  They discovered and applied these elements in very first time. Material availability was very big back then, what they were capable of designing.  In Rome, concrete was available while it was not in Greece.





The Pantheon


Pantheon has been my favorite architecture of Roman time period. I have visited Rome last summer. I sadly could not enter since it was closed. Today in our society, column is sometimes called "designer's nightmare".  Early as Roman time period, they already solved this problem and made building much more sturdy than previous style. Pantheon is very famous for the largest unreinforced concrete domes of the world.  In sustainability stand point, it is amazing that dome has oculus which allows natural day light to lit whole interior.  It especially works the best in dome shaped interior. I regret that I could not go inside of the Pantheon, when I was there.





Current Application

In modern design, Roman style are still loved by many people.  Ancient Roman's great invention are still attracting people today.