Famous Ancient Roman Architecture Facts
The ancient Romans made great strides forward in architecture. Learning from the Etruscans and later the Greek people they developed their own styles and came up with amazing architectural innovations. In this section of Ancient Rome History facts we list famous ancient Roman architecture facts. On this page we supply interesting general information that will give you an overview of what Roman architecture was like. This information includes what some of their innovations were, where some of the great architectural structures are located, and who were the great architects of this great civilization. When we think of Roman architecture many of their great structures come to mind such as the Roman Colosseum and the Pantheon. However, as you will see in the list of facts below, many of the Romans architectural achievements were less glorious and had a more practical use; such as supplying water to cities and providing housing. Hopefully both kids and adults will find this information interesting and useful.Roman Architecture Facts
- When we think of Roman architecture what comes to mind are usually their spectacular amphitheaters; the most famous of which is the Roman Colosseum. There are well over two hundred Roman amphitheaters that have survived the ages many of which have been well preserved. Amphitheaters are round or oval structures and were used for numerous purposes including meetings and of course gladiator fights.
- In order to supply their cities with water the Romans built incredible structures called aqueducts to carry water over valleys. These aqueducts resembled bridges and helped bring water from an often far away source into the city to supply drinking water and water for public baths and private homes. The Romans improvements to the arch and improvements to materials such as concrete enabled them to construct these amazing vital structures. They built these structures throughout the empire including eleven in the city of Rome itself.
- The Romans built and perfected multi-story apartment structures called insulae which were used to house most of the urban population. An example of this type of building can be found in the Roman town of Ostia. This town has apartment buildings dating back to the Roman Emperor Trajan (98 AD - 117 AD).
- The ancient Romans perfected the use of the arch. An arch is a curved structure used to support a building. Arches had been used for centuries before ancient Rome began to flourish. The old civilizations of Egypt and Greek both utilized the arch in some of their structures. However prior to the Romans arches were not able to support large structures and columns were needed which would limited the size and style of buildings. The Romans used concrete to build their arches which could support a lot of weight allowing them to build huge structures including temples, amphitheaters, and aqueducts.
Famous Roman Architecture List
Below is a list of just a few of the famous buildings and structures built by the ancient Romans. Some are located in Italy and others were built elsewhere in the Roman Empire. For more detailed famous Ancient Roman architecture facts please see some of the other pages of this section.- Pantheon
- Roman Colosseum
- The Roman Forum
- Arch of Constantine
- Mausoleum of Augustus
- Mausoleum of Hadrian
- Arch of Titus
- Hadrian's Villa
- Hadrian's Summertime Theater
- Baths at Ostia
- Library at Ephesus
- Markets of Trajan
ANCIENT ROME HISTORY FACTS