ARCHITECTURE

BUNUAN-CACHIN-CAPARAS-SUMALING
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 ROMAN
CULTURE
INFLUENCES:
⬗ Primitive cultures of the area
Rome was founded
in (they were peasants and warriors)
⬗ ETRURIAN CIVILIZATION: urban,
offering cult to the
ancestors
⬗ GREEK AND HELLENISTIC: this
was the
model that aimed at imitating
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 GENERAL
CHARACTERISTICS
⬗ It is practical and utilitarian
⬗ Interest in public works and
engineering
⬗ Monumentality
⬗ Great technical advances
⬗ Colossal to show Roman
power
3 ⬗ It is commemorative and
 GENERAL
CHARACTERISTICS
⬗ Special importance for the
internal space
⬗ Integral view of the art
combining:
– Beauty and sumptuosity
with
utility and practical sense
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⬗ Buildings are integrated in the
 BUILDING
SYSTEMS
⬗ LINTELLED:
• Copied from the Greeks
• Spaces are closed by straight
lines
⬗ VAULTED
• Taken from the Etrurian
• Use of arches
• Barrel vaults
⬗ DOMES
⬗ STRONG WALLS so that they do not
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use external supports
 MATERIALS
⬗ LIMESTONE
⬗ CONCRETE
⬗ MORTAR
⬗ ARCHES:
– They used half point or
semicircular arches
– They could use lintels above
these arches
– Pediments were combined
with them
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ROMAN COLOSSEUM
⬗ LARGE, CIRCULAR OR OVAL
OPEN-AIR VENUES WITH
RAISED SEATING – built by
the ancient Romans. They
were used for events such
as gladiator combats,
venationes (animal
slayings) and executions.
⬗ An estimated 100,000
prisoners were bought
back to Rome as slaves
after the Jewish War. In
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the building of the
BUILDING MATERIALS
⬗ Travertine, a limestone
that the Romans
called lapis Tiburtinus, is a
sedimentary stone made
essentially of calcite,
deposited by calcareous
waters. Its colour is
whitish, slightly yellow or
reddish. It is still used for
building, for floors or as a
8 veneer. IT WAS USED FOR
 BUILDING MATERIALS
⬗ Tuff a porous stone
consolidated and stratified,
though the tendency is to use
tufa for calcareous stone
deposited by waters and to
restrict tuff to volcanic ash)
is a stone produced by the
cementing of vulcanic
material fallen after
eruptions. Its colour is gray,
yellowish, greenish or
9 brown. IT IS USED IN THE
 BUILDING MATERIALS
⬗ Tiles and bricks were produced
with clay mixed with water and
often with sand, straw and
finely ground pozzolana. The
mixture was pressed by hand into
a wooden mould, and dried first
in the sun. The tiles had to be
turned over often, so as that
they would not bend. After a
long time of drying under cover,
the tiles were placed in the oven
and baked at 800C. BRICKS
10 COULD BE USED IN WALL
BUILDING MATERIALS
⬗ Roman Cement, or
concrete, is a building
material with a binding
agent, usually produced by
mixing finely ground
limestone and clay. It
reacts to water by forming
a cement that hardens to
the consistency of stone.
When mixed with sand,
11 small stones or pebbles
 BUILDING MATERIALS
⬗ Mortar (malta) is a mix of a
binding agent (calcia,
cement) and water (malta
semplice) or with water
and sand (m. composta). It
hardens when exposed to
air (malta aerea) and also
in water (malta idraulica).

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BUILDING MATERIALS
⬗ Lime is a binding agent that
Romans obtained by
heating limestone – which
contains calcium, carbon
and oxygen - in a kiln.
Limestone undergoes a
chemical reaction in which
the carbon and some of the
oxygen will be driven off
as carbon dioxide, leaving
13 a highly reactive product
SYSTEM OF
CONSTRUCTION
⬗ THE INVENTION OF
CONCRETE AND THE
VAULTED ARCH
-As concrete was so new they
did not know how strong it
was or long it would last. The
Romans cautiously combined
concrete together with
stone. Concrete was made by
mixing a strong volcanic
material ( called pazzolana )
with rubble, sand and a
mixture of limes.
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 SYSTEM OF
CONSTRUCTION
⬗ The Colosseum had four tiers.
The ceilings of the passages
and corridors which circled
the arena on each tier
consisted of vaulted arches
made of concrete but the
supports they rested on were
made of strong, heavy
limestone. The Vaulted arches
made the ceilings much
stronger than a flat ceiling
would have been. Vaulted
arches made of concrete
added strength to the building
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 FUNCTION OF THE
STRUCTURE
⬗ To provide a permanent
purpose-built arena in the
centre of Ancient Rome for
staging various forms of
entertainment for the Ancient
Romans - a gift to Roman
Citizens
⬗ To create a massive, breath-
taking structure conveying
the wealth, might and power
of Rome
⬗ To seat up to 80,000 Romans,
16 each with an unobstructed
 FUNCTION OF THE
STRUCTURE
⬗ To provide a showcase for exotic,
wild animals taken from all
corners of the Roman Empire,
once again to convey the extent of
Rome's conquests of different
countries
⬗ To ensure the support and
popularity of the Emperors
Vespasian and Titus (members of
the Flavian dynasty of emperors)
amongst the Plebs
⬗ To utilize and showcase the latest
Roman engineering and building
techniques, including a labyrinth
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of tunnels under the arena
 FUNCTION OF THE
STRUCTURE
⬗ To stage reconstructions of
famous Roman battle
victories, including sea
battles requiring the arena to
be flooded, encouraging
Roman patriotism
⬗ To provide advanced crowd
control features, such as 76
separate entrances, to ensure
the massive crowds who
flocked to the Gladiator
games were kept in order
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SOURCES:
• http://www.the-
colosseum.net/architecture/materials_e
n.htm
• http://www.tribunesandtriumphs.org/co
losseum/building-the-colosseum.htm
• https://depts.washington.edu/hrome/Au
thors/jimkuo2/IlColosseo/pub_zbarticle
_view_printable.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_am
phitheatre#Important_Roman_amphitheat
res
• https://www.history.com/topics/ancient
-history/colosseum
• https://www.slideshare.net/ang_ruiz/r
oman-architecture-15558618
• file:///C:/Users/PEARL/Downloads/ro
man-architecture-1210459931573188-
9.pdf
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