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Roman Engineering
The ancient Romans were famous for their advanced engineering accomplishments. Technology for bringing running water into cities was developed in the east, but transformed by the Romans into a technology inconceivable in Greece. The architecture used in Rome was strongly influenced by Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ... and Etruscan sources. Roman roads Roman roads were constructed to be immune to floods and other environmental hazards. Some roads built by the Romans are still in use today. There were several variations on a standard Roman road. Most of the higher quality roads were composed of five layers. The bottom layer, called the ''pavimentum'', was one inch thick and made of mortar. Above this were four strata of masonry. The layer directly above ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal, a group 11 element, and one of the noble metals. It is one of the least reactivity (chemistry), reactive chemical elements, being the second-lowest in the reactivity series. It is solid under standard temperature and pressure, standard conditions. Gold often occurs in free elemental (native state (metallurgy), native state), as gold nugget, nuggets or grains, in rock (geology), rocks, vein (geology), veins, and alluvial deposits. It occurs in a solid solution series with the native element silver (as in electrum), naturally alloyed with other metals like copper and palladium, and mineral inclusions such as within pyrite. Less commonly, it occurs in minerals as gold compounds, often with tellurium (gold tellurides). Gold is resistant to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anio Novus
Aqua Anio Novus (Latin for "New Anio aqueduct") was an ancient Roman aqueduct supplying the city of Rome. Like the Aqua Claudia, it was begun by emperor Caligula in 38 AD and completed in 52 AD by Claudius, who dedicated them both on August 1. The aqueduct—together with the Aqua Anio Vetus, Aqua Marcia and Aqua Claudia—is regarded as one of the four great aqueducts of Rome. The quality of water delivered to the city of Rome left much to be desired, and before Frontinus' reforms of the water supply system its waters were used to supplement the flow of other aqueducts when needed—rendering waters in those too torpid in the process. History The building of was lacking in quality, and it required repairs after a few decades of use. In or around 71 AD the aqueduct was extensively restored by Vespasian. Further repairs took place during the reign of Trajan, and smaller repairs were made during Hadrian's reign as well. The aqueduct was again restored while the Severan d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Subiaco Dams
The Subiaco Dams were a group of three Ancient Rome, Roman Dam#Gravity dams, gravity dams at Subiaco, Italy, Subiaco, Lazio, Italy, devised as pleasure lakes for Roman Emperor, Emperor Nero (54–68 AD). The biggest one was the highest dam in the Roman Empire, and even in the world until its accidental destruction in 1305. Location The dam was built by the Romans at Sublaqueum (modern Subiaco, Lazio, Subiaco), in the Roman province of Latium in central Italy on the river Aniene (Latin language, Lat. ''Anio''). Sublaqueum is from the Latin ''sub lacu'', meaning "below the lake". The location lies some 75 km east of Rome. The simple gravity dam was constructed of masonry and stood roughly 410m above sea level. History The ancient name of the city, Sublaqueum, derives from its position below the lakes of Nero's villa. In the reign of Claudius (41 - 54) and Nero (54 - 68), the area around Subiaco formed an imperial summer residence, offering the possibility of hunting trips ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Roman Dams And Reservoirs
This is a list of Roman dams and reservoirs. The study of Roman dam-building has received little scholarly attention in comparison to their other civil engineering activities, even though their contributions in this field have been ranked alongside their expertise in constructing the well-known Roman aqueducts, bridges, and roads. Roman dam construction began in earnest in the early imperial period. For the most part, it concentrated on the semi-arid fringe of the empire, namely the provinces of North Africa, the Near East, and Hispania. The relative abundance of Spanish dams below is due partly to more intensive field work there; for Italy only the Subiaco Dams, created by emperor Nero (54–68 AD) for recreational purposes, are attested. These dams are noteworthy, though, for their extraordinary height, which remained unsurpassed anywhere in the world until the Late Middle Ages. The most frequent dam types were earth- or rock-filled embankment dams and masonry gravity dam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caesar's Rhine Bridges
Caesar's bridges across the Rhine, the first two bridges on record to cross the Rhine river, were built by Julius Caesar and his legionaries during the Gallic War in 55 BC and 53 BC. Strategically successful, they are also considered masterpieces of military engineering. Background During Caesar's conquest of Gaul it became necessary to secure the eastern border of the new provinces against plundering Germanic tribes. The tribes felt safe on the eastern side of the Rhine, trusting the river as a natural border which protected them from retaliation after their opportunistic raids into the province. Caesar decided to confront them and show support for the Ubians, an allied German tribe across the Rhine. While he could have crossed the river by boats which the Ubians had offered to provide, Caesar decided to build a bridge to demonstrate Rome's ability to bring the fight at any time to the Germanic tribes. Additionally, as he indicated in his '' Commentary on the Gallic War' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apollodorus Of Damascus
Apollodorus of Damascus () was an architect and engineer from Roman Syria, who flourished during the 2nd century AD. As an engineer he authored several technical treatises, and his massive architectural output gained him immense popularity during his time. He is one of the few architects whose name survives from antiquity, and is credited with introducing several Eastern innovations to the Roman Imperial style, such as making the dome a standard. He is also known as ''Apollodorus Mechanicus''. Early life Apollodorus was born in Damascus, Roman Syria. Modern sources refer to him as Nabatean, or as Greek. Neither Cassius Dio nor Procopius, scholars and historians of antiquity, mention his origins when writing of him. Little is known of his early life, but he started his career as a military engineer before meeting future emperor Trajan in Damascus, then being summoned to Rome by him when he was a consul in 91 AD, after his twentieth birthday, and later accompanying him during ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trajan's Bridge
Trajan's Bridge (; ), also called Bridge of Apollodorus over the Danube, was a Roman segmental arch bridge, the first bridge to be built over the lower Danube and considered one of the greatest achievements in Roman architecture. Though it was only functional for 165 years, it is often considered to have been the longest arch bridge in both total span and length for more than 1,000 years. The bridge was completed in 105 AD and designed by Emperor Trajan's architect Apollodorus of Damascus before the Second Dacian War to allow Roman troops to cross the river. Fragmentary ruins of the bridge's piers are still in existence. The site The bridge was situated east of the Iron Gates, near the present-day cities of Drobeta-Turnu Severin in Romania and Kladovo in Serbia. Its construction was ordered by the Roman Emperor, Emperor Trajan Trajan ( ; born Marcus Ulpius Traianus, 18 September 53) was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the secon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pons Aemilius
The Pons Aemilius (Latin for the " Aemilian Bridge"; ) is the oldest Roman stone bridge in Rome. Preceded by a wooden version, it was rebuilt in stone in the 2nd century BC. It once spanned the Tiber, connecting the Forum Boarium, the Roman cattle market, on the east with Trastevere on the west. A single arch in mid-river is all that remains today, lending the bridge its name Ponte Rotto (Italian for the "Broken Bridge"). History Antiquity The oldest piers of the bridge were probably laid when the Via Aurelia was constructed in the mid-2nd century BC.Claridge (2010), p. 258. According to Titus Livius, there existed a bridge in the same location as the Pons Aemilius in 192 BC. The first stone bridge was constructed by Censor Marcus Fulvius Nobilior several years after that, in 179 BCLivy 40.51.4 (although it was not completed until 151 BC).Forney & Hobart (1892), p. 117. The bridge's piers date from this early period, although its arches were constructed by Scipio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arch
An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but structural load-bearing arches became popular only after their adoption by the Ancient Romans in the 4th century BC. Arch-like structures can be horizontal, like an arch dam that withstands the horizontal hydrostatic pressure load. Arches are usually used as supports for many types of vaults, with the barrel vault in particular being a continuous arch. Extensive use of arches and vaults characterizes an arcuated construction, as opposed to the trabeated system, where, like in the architectures of ancient Greece, China, and Japan (as well as the modern steel-framed technique), posts and beams dominate. Arches had several advantages over the lintel, especially in the masonry construction: with the same amount of material it can have ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bridge Alcantara
A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually something that is otherwise difficult or impossible to cross. There are many different designs of bridges, each serving a particular purpose and applicable to different situations. Designs of bridges vary depending on factors such as the function of the bridge, the nature of the terrain where the bridge is constructed and anchored, the material used to make it, and the funds available to build it. The earliest bridges were likely made with fallen trees and stepping stones. The Neolithic people built boardwalk bridges across marshland. The Arkadiko Bridge, dating from the 13th century BC, in the Peloponnese is one of the oldest arch bridges in existence and use. Etymology The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' traces the origin of the word ''bridg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
