Roman Architecture Flashcards
What were the columns used for?
The column orders were (in most cases), not structural and used of decoration only
What did the building types include?
Aqueducts and Cisterns, Roads and Bridges, Theaters, Arenas, Circuses, Baths, Forums, Basilicas, Forums, Temples, Palaces, Warehouses, Dams, Defensive Walls, Triumphal Arches, Light Houses, etc.
What is the Roman Forum?
The Public Space (like Greek Agora)
What is the Roman Basilica?
The primary building that abutted the space (like Greek Stoa) except Basilica had large arch supported interior civic space
- BIG, GAUDY, POWERFUL
TRUE OR FALSE:
Roman architecture was spatially organized, symmetrical and axial that forced the observer along a
path to control and dominate them and reinforce the power of the state.
TRUE
Did Romans use symmetry?
Symmetry was used to order and organize large building programs such Roman Bath complexes bc of mass size of the acreage
What are the characteristics of Roman Arch?
extravagant, gaudy, showy, colorful, over the top
Where does the word “architecture” come from?
knowledge of ‘arch technology”
What were TWO concepts from the Ancient World?
Technologies and Spatial Comparison
What are the Spatial Comparison Concepts for Romans Material?
Organized, Axial, Control and Dominate the Viewer, Impressive Interior Spaces, gaudy to show off power and wealth
What leads to the creation of Rome?
Invention of the arch and the invention of concrete
What did temples represent for the Romans?
Represented state and emperor
Information of Building Materials
- After Carrara Quarry opens, unlimited supply of white marble
- Perfected brick making, and new material - CONCRETE
- Employed raw material - concrete - to make massive walls and vaults to enclose spaces
What Romans see Space as?
Space was as important as the mass that was enclosing it
- Use of space was PRIMARY
- was an ACTIVE ELEMENT
Which structures had some form of Greek system of order?
Arches and Vaults
Arch -
supports itself, mural structure
Vault -
supports something, also roofs over significant area of building
CONCRETE -
- mixture of mortar like cement with aggregate
- Romans used Pozzolana - volcanic ash yielded a mortar of tremendous strength
- Was mixed with aggregate - small chunks of solids, stone, gravel, building debris
- Solidified into dense, homogenous mass that constituted artificial stone - concrete
What did they use to bring water into these growing cities?
Aqueducts
- The city of Rome has 1.25-1.7 million people at its height with aqueducts that could bring in
350 million gallons of water per day.
- had 11 aqueducts throughout Rome
Theater of Marcellus: 11 BC
- Where was it located?
- dressed with brick, marble, and columns
- used arches on interior and exterior
- reused as home and shelter later
- Seats 10K spectators - early architecture
- Transformed into medieval fortress and a renaissance palace
- Doric Column Orders at base, Ionic Column Order above
- Located in Rome, Italy
Colosseum: 80 AD
- Where was it located?
- Named after colossal statue of Nero
- Embodies highest degree and largest scale all virtues of - structure and design
- 50K people, 165’ tall
- Most seating collapsed, preserved site as a ruin
- Survives through history of saints, Christians didn’t like the history of bloody and gory fights
- Achieved by perfecting earlier ideas by expanding scale successfully within elliptical
- System of tunnels, chambers, mechanical devices under the arena floor – dressing rms, animal cages located here
Roman Mastery
Roman Mastery had Function, structure, materials - concrete, travertine, tufa, brick, marble, wood — was now complete
Baths of Caracalla:(A.D 216):
- Where was it located?
- Sophisticated - had Hot and Cold water areas
- Cooled area, symmetrically designed to order and organize a large building
- Did Not separate sexes
- Had: Changing Rooms, Exercise Areas, Hot Room, Steam Room, used special oils and massages
- 50 acres of space
- 2 largest and best preserved - Caracalla and Diocletian
- Scheme of vast complexity and rigorous, bilateral symmetry replaced simple, barrel vaulted chambers
- Main axis - cool swimming pool
- Sunny South End - tepidarium and caldarium
- Main block had 8 entrances
Has hierarchical pattern with central ‘spine’ - Women used in the morning, men used in afternoon
- Located in Rome, Italy
Temples
Few survived, represented a pagan perspective
- most demolished, seen as unimportant
- Scores of temples built during every period at great scale and high expense
- Shared axial plan, board, triple, cella, low silhouette, deep porch, wide spread columns, terra cotta structure with Etruscans
Where is Maison Carree located?
20 B.C: Nimes, France; Roman (Temple)
- one of best preserved roman temples
Pantheon: 118-28 A.D:
- Where was it located?
- What is it also known as?
- Influenced the design of the UVA Thomas Jefferson Library
- 142’ interior span across and 142’ height
- Clear open oculus at top. 28’ diameter
- Known as the “Pantheon of Gods”
- Monumental: each niche is to hold another God
- Rome, Italy
Arch of Titus: 90 AD
Roman form of “advertisement” (They liked to mark things w/ arches)
- Built to celebrate Conquest of Palestine
- important Roman prototype - a Triumphant Arch
City Planning
was unplanned that evolves over time
What are Castrum Cities?
Easier for Roman soldiers to navigate/know. These soldiers fought for the Roman culture/lifestyle.
What does Castrum mean?
Military grid, N/E/S/W Streets, (Baths, religion, homes, gates, cemetery)
