Ancient Roman Dwellings Evolved Architecturally In Time

Ancient Roman dwellings evolved architecturally in time from simple huts in the earliest times, to sophisticated and extremely long-lived structures in the later Republic and Imperial Rome following the annexation of the Greek city-states. This is very evident in many Italian and Greek cities where archaeologists have found different occupational levels, with each lower architectural strata being much more ancient (Lavan, Ãâ€"zgenel, Sarantis, 2007). Typically, however, Roman architecture refers to the period from the establishment of the Roman Republic (6 century BC) to the relocation of the capital to Constantinople in 330AD. An architectural period supported by two great innovations: the cement and the arch. The Romans adopted the lime†¦show more content†¦Wealthier people had much more elaborated houses, with multiple rooms, courtyards, gardens, and pools. This architecture provided security but also private open space for family recreation. We can get a glimpse of how livable these houses where from surviving specimens in old villages in Mediterranean islands, like Crete, that also preserve the Roman family structure of pater familias, in which three or four generations live together under the leadership of the oldest male. While each sub-family has its own quarters, they all share the courtyard and dinner. The pre-school cousins, and any domestic animals, play together safely all day long in the enclosed courtyard, under the supervision of the grandparents. Such an arrangement not only pools the resources but, also, free the parents for working outside. In such a semi-coenobitic life-style, the distinction between siblings and cousins is not as clear-cut as in Western societi es. However, the Roman domus also housed the servants and slaves. However, just like today, the vast majority of the Roman urbanites lived in cramped, multi-story apartment buildings called insulae. Even so, rich and poor people did not live segregated ghettos; luxurious domi and shabby insulae were intermingled in the cities. At first, these buildings were made with timber, and mud brick; however, the concrete allowed the Roman tenement buildings to reach new heights, with some being seven storiesShow MoreRelatedHadrians Wall2722 Words   |  11 PagesAlthough it was completed almost 1900 years ago, the Roman ruin known today as Hadrian s wall remains remarkably intact, and retains much of its former glory and mystique. Located in northern England, and stretching across nearly 80 miles of the hilly countryside of Northumbria, the ruin marks the northernmost expansion of one of the greatest civilizations in human history. It is architecturally significant as an astounding achievement of ancient engineering and design, and historically significan t