In ancient Rome, the development of concrete and the arch played an integral part in the shaping of Roman culture. In order for Rome to create the metropolis she would become, strategic use of concrete and the arch was necessary to deploy. The following paper will discuss how important Rome’s creative use of concrete and the arch was in shaping Roman culture.
Rome, whom would fulfill all her heart’s architectural ambitions, faced tough challenges before she could realize her potential. Initially, when Rome was still new to concrete, wall filler was comprised of rubble. Rubble as filler for walls limited Rome’s architectural ambitions because of how weak the building material was. In order for Rome to fulfill her dreams of becoming a fully …show more content…
A volcanic earth was discovered in vast quantities around Rome called pozzolana (“The Architecture of”, 2008). This building material was used in conjunction with rock and broken brick to make concrete. Concrete was a much stronger building material than what Rome had been using before, and concrete became the answer for Rome’s engineering challenge to develop the structures necessary to become the functioning metropolis she aimed to be. The article describes, “Judicious use of bricks and concrete together enabled massive, permanent structures to be built” (“The Architecture of”, 2008). Without the use of concrete, Rome would be limited in how high she could build her buildings. But, with the use of concrete, Rome had new ideas for housing, water ways, and even …show more content…
With the new environment Rome had created for herself, demands for water had skyrocketed. The problem which faced Rome was how to get enough water to accommodate the inhabitants of Rome. Rome, however, was able to use the arch as a building technique to get water from the mountains into Rome. This building technique utilizing the arch was of paramount importance because without the use of the arch Rome would not have been able to get as much water into the city to sustain a thriving culture. As the article describes, giant aqueducts were constructed to get water from the mountains into the city, “the arch enables wide spaces to be crossed by the use of the minimum of materials, thus relieving weight which would otherwise put an intolerable burden on the structure” (“The Architecture of”, 2008). To put it another way, by incorporating the arch into their aqueducts, the engineering challenge of providing water to enough people in Rome was able to be met. As a result, Rome was able to thrive and become the metropolis she was destined to be. The article estimates, “over 1000 million liters of water a day came into Rome through eight aqueducts which were then operational” (“The Architecture of”, 2008). In effect, arch technology contributed to the change in culture experienced in Rome and was in and of itself incredibly important for Rome.
In conclusion, the development
Rome, whom would fulfill all her heart’s architectural ambitions, faced tough challenges before she could realize her potential. Initially, when Rome was still new to concrete, wall filler was comprised of rubble. Rubble as filler for walls limited Rome’s architectural ambitions because of how weak the building material was. In order for Rome to fulfill her dreams of becoming a fully …show more content…
A volcanic earth was discovered in vast quantities around Rome called pozzolana (“The Architecture of”, 2008). This building material was used in conjunction with rock and broken brick to make concrete. Concrete was a much stronger building material than what Rome had been using before, and concrete became the answer for Rome’s engineering challenge to develop the structures necessary to become the functioning metropolis she aimed to be. The article describes, “Judicious use of bricks and concrete together enabled massive, permanent structures to be built” (“The Architecture of”, 2008). Without the use of concrete, Rome would be limited in how high she could build her buildings. But, with the use of concrete, Rome had new ideas for housing, water ways, and even …show more content…
With the new environment Rome had created for herself, demands for water had skyrocketed. The problem which faced Rome was how to get enough water to accommodate the inhabitants of Rome. Rome, however, was able to use the arch as a building technique to get water from the mountains into Rome. This building technique utilizing the arch was of paramount importance because without the use of the arch Rome would not have been able to get as much water into the city to sustain a thriving culture. As the article describes, giant aqueducts were constructed to get water from the mountains into the city, “the arch enables wide spaces to be crossed by the use of the minimum of materials, thus relieving weight which would otherwise put an intolerable burden on the structure” (“The Architecture of”, 2008). To put it another way, by incorporating the arch into their aqueducts, the engineering challenge of providing water to enough people in Rome was able to be met. As a result, Rome was able to thrive and become the metropolis she was destined to be. The article estimates, “over 1000 million liters of water a day came into Rome through eight aqueducts which were then operational” (“The Architecture of”, 2008). In effect, arch technology contributed to the change in culture experienced in Rome and was in and of itself incredibly important for Rome.
In conclusion, the development