Short History of Roman Architecture

2. Geographical
The comparative simplicity of the long coast-line of the Italian Peninsula forms a strong contrast to
the complexity of the indented coast-line of Greece and the innumerable islands of the archipelago.
Italy has few natural harbors and few islands along her shores. The great chain of the Apennines runs like
a spine down the centre of Italy and much of the country is very mountainous, but it is not broken up
into isolated little valleys to the same extent as in Greece. These clearly marked geographical
differences between the countries of the Greeks and the Roman have their counterpart in equally
clearly defined differences of national character

3. Geological
The geological formation
of Italy differs from that of
Greece, where the chief
and almost the only
building material is
marble ; whereas in
addition to marble the
Romans could procure
terra-cotta, stone, and
brick, all of which they
used, even for important
building. In the
neighborhood of Rome
there was travertine, a
hard limestone from Tivoli.

4. Climatic
North Italy has the climate of the temperate region of Europe, Central Italy is genial
and sunny, while the south is almost tropical. This variety of climatic conditions is sufficient to
account for diversity of architecture features and treatment in the peninsula itself, while the
differing climates of the various Roman provinces from England to North Africa, and from Syria to
Spain, produced local modification in details, though Roman Architecture character was so
pronounced and assertive as to leave little choice in general design.
Religious
The religious of ancient Rome was part of the constitution of the States, and even the
worship of the gods, which were adopted from the Greeks under Latin names with attributes to
suit Roman religious requirements, was eventually kept up-only as a matte of state policy.
Sacerdotalism had no place in Roman religion and the priests were not, as in Egypt, a powerful
and privileged class, but only performed the sacrifices, while Augurs ascertained from omens
the will of the gods. Every house, whether palace, villa or domus, had an altar to the Lares or
Family gods, and ancestor worship was a recognised part of relogious rites.
Sacerdotalism is the belief that propitiatory
sacrifices for sin require the intervention of a
priest. That is, it is the belief that a special,
segregated order of men, called the
priesthood, are the only ones who can
commune directly with God or the gods.

5. The Romans adopted the columnar and trabeated style of the Greeks and
developed also the arch, vault and dome of the Etruscans. This combined use of column,
beam, and arch is the keynote of the Roman style in its earliest stages.
Cast concrete wall
Arch centre supported at springing