The Roman state goes through a difficult path of development. It first conquers Italy (V-III centuries BC), then Carthage (II century BC) and, finally, Greece (II century BC).

The architecture of Ancient Rome changed markedly throughout the existence of this mighty state.

Many features formed the basis of Roman art. The Etruscans were the forerunners of the Romans. In the middle of the first millennium, they already had their own culture. Etruscan temples are similar to Greek periptera, but the front facade is more emphasized in them: there is a platform with columns in front of the entrance, and a multi-stage staircase leads to it. When erecting gates, the Etruscans often used a semicircular arch, which the Greeks almost did not know. Their houses had a room in the center with an open square hole in the roof in the middle and walls black with soot. Apparently there was a hearth. This gave reason to call this room an atrium (from the word "ater" - "black").

Atrium - a room with a hole in the roof

In culture, the official state flow of a Hellenized society and popular tastes, dating back to the Italic past, collide.

In general, the Roman state is isolated, opposed to a private person. It was famous for its system of government and law.

The army was the basis of world power. The supreme power was concentrated in the hands of the commanders, who had little regard for the interests of the whole people and the state, and the cities were built on the model of camps.

According to the views of Vitruvius (the treatise was written 27-25 BC), architecture falls into two categories: construction and proportions (the ratios of the individual parts of the building serve as its basis). And the aesthetic beginning is only in the order, the columns attached to the structures.

In the era of Augustus (30 BC - 14 AD), such architectural monuments as the “square house” in Nimes (South France) or the temple of Fortune Virilis, belonging to the pseudo-peripter type, were built. The pseudoperipter is similar to the peripter, but the cella is set back slightly. The temple is placed on a high podium; a wide staircase leads to its entrance (this determines the similarity of the pseudoperipter with Etruscan temples). Only in the Roman temple are the classical forms of the order more strictly observed: fluted columns, Ionian capitals, entablature.

Maison Carré "Square House" in Nimes (France). 1st century BC e.

Temple of Fortune Virilis. 1st century BC e.

Types of housing for wealthy citizens

The originality of Roman architecture responded even more strongly in a new type of dwelling in the spirit of eclecticism: the Italian atrium and the Hellenistic peristyle. The richest Pompeian buildings, such as the houses of Pansa, the Faun, the Lorea Tiburtina, the Vettii, belong to this type. The peristyle served more as an ornament to a rich estate than as a place for the diverse life of its inhabitants, as it was in the houses of Greece.

Unlike the Greek dwelling, all the rooms were lined up in a strict order on the sides of its main axis.

Atrium

Peristyle of the House of the Vettii, seen from the great triclinium.

Portico and garden in the house of Lorea Tiburtina

House of the Faun (Villa of Publius Sulla). present tense

House of the Faun (Villa of Publius Sulla). That's the way it used to be

Villa Publius Sulla (House of the Faun). Inner garden with peristyle and Ionic order

Pompeian villas enchant with the high perfection of applied art. But there slips a lot of vanity and tasteless luxury: painting walls with copies of famous Greek paintings of the 4th century, imitation of Egyptian flat decorations, or, conversely, creating a deceptive impression of windows.

The era of August is characterized by stylization and eclecticism. The Altar of Peace in the forum belongs to the best monuments of this time. The difference in relief is immediately evident: the figures are placed in several planes, which gives a picturesque look, but between the figures there is no sense of space, air, or light environment, as in Hellenistic reliefs.

Altar of Peace, built in honor of the Goddess of Peace. Indoor museum.

Relief of one of the walls of the altar

The classical current under Augustus was the main one, but not the only one. In the II century. BC. supporters of the Old Testament antiquity opposed the imitation of the Greeks.

Engineering structures. aqueducts

Among the Roman monuments there is a large section devoted to engineering structures. Thus, many elements of urban improvement appeared: the paved Appian Way, water supply, aqueduct.

Guard bridge at Nimes Pont du Gard

Pompeii. Italy

Rome

Lead plumbing

Forum

Art becomes in the hands of sovereigns a means of strengthening their authority. Hence the spectacular nature of architectural structures, the large scale of construction, the predilection for huge sizes. There was more shameless demagogy in Roman architecture than genuine humanism and a sense of beauty.

The most majestic type of building was the forum. Each emperor sought to perpetuate himself with such a structure.

The Forum of Emperor Trajan reaches almost the size of the Athenian acropolis. But in their design, the acropolis and the forum are profoundly different. The stiff order, the predilection for strict symmetry is expressed on a huge scale.

Forum of Emperor Trajan. Italy

Roman builders operated not with volumes, like the builders of the Athenian acropolis, but with open interiors, within which small volumes stood out (columns and temples). This increased role of the interior characterizes the Roman Forum as a stage of great historical significance in the development of world architecture.

Forum, in the center - the columns of the temple of Saturn, behind them the triumphal arch of Septimius Severus

The photo on the left shows the Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine, the largest building ever built in the forum in 312.

The Temple of Peace, also known as the Forum of Vespasian (Latin: Forum Vespasiani), was built in Rome in 71 AD. e.

Tabularium building (state archive) in the forum, 78 BC e. - the earliest of the structures that have survived to this day, in which the system of Roman cell architecture was applied, combining two opposite constructive principles - a beam and a vaulted structure.

urban layout

Roman cities, like Ostia in Italy or Timgrad (in Africa), resemble military camps in the strict correctness of their plan. Straight streets are bordered by rows of columns that accompany any movement in the city. The streets end with huge triumphal arches. Living in such a city meant always feeling like a soldier, being able to mobilize.

Timgrad is an ancient Roman city in North Africa, located on the territory of modern Algeria. 100 AD e.

triumphal arches

Triumphal arches were a new type of Roman architecture. One of the best is the Arch of Titus. Arches were erected in order to serve as a memory of victories among generations. In the construction of this arch, there are two types of order: one implied - on which rests a semicircular arch, separated from it by a cornice; another order, marked by mighty semi-columns, is placed on a high podium and gives the whole architecture the character of pompous solemnity. Both orders permeate each other; the cornice of the first merges with the cornices of the niches. For the first time in the history of architecture, a building is composed of the relationship of two systems.

The predilection of the Romans for the impression of heaviness and strength is reflected in the arch of Titus in the huge entablature and attic. The sharp shadows from the eaves add tension and strength to the architectural forms.

amphitheaters

The amphitheaters served as an arena for entertaining and spectacular spectacles for a crowded crowd: performances of gladiators, fisticuffs. Unlike the Greek theaters, they did not give high artistic impressions. For example, the building of the Colosseum, which had 80 exits and this allowed the audience to quickly fill the rows and exit just as quickly. Inside, the Colosseum makes an irresistible impression with its clarity and simplicity of form. From the outside it was decorated with statues. The whole Colosseum expressed restraint, at the same time with impressiveness. For the sake of this, its three open tiers are crowned with a fourth, more massive, dissected only by flat pilasters.

The Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheatre) today. Year of construction -80 AD e.

The original appearance of the Colosseum

Colosseum inside

In the construction of the Pantheon, all the centuries-old experience of Roman construction was used: its double walls with rubble mass inside, unloading arches, a dome with a diameter and height of 42 m. Architecture had never known such a huge artistically designed space before. The special strength of the Pantheon lies in the simplicity and integrity of its architectural compositions. It does not have a complex gradation of scale, an increase in features that give increased expressiveness.

Thermae

The needs of urban life were created in the middle of the 1st century. AD a new type of buildings - baths. These buildings responded to various needs: from the culture of the body to the need for mental food, reflection in solitude. Outside, the terms had an unremarkable appearance. The main thing in them is. With a large variety of plan forms, the builders subordinated them to symmetry. The walls were faced with marble - red, pink, purple or pale green.

Ruins of the Baths of Emperor Caracalla (Antonin's Baths). III century (212-217 years)

Roman art completes the history of ancient art.

The architecture of Ancient Rome, as an original art, was formed by the time of the 4th-1st centuries. BC e. The architectural monuments of Ancient Rome now, even in ruins, conquer with their majesty. The Romans initiated a new era of world architecture, in which the main place belonged to public buildings designed for huge numbers of people: basilicas, baths (public baths), theaters, amphitheaters, circuses, libraries, markets. The list of building structures of Rome should also include religious ones: temples, altars, tombs.

Throughout the ancient world, the architecture of Rome has no equal in terms of the height of engineering art, the variety of types of structures, the richness of compositional forms, and the scale of construction. The Romans introduced engineering structures (aqueducts, bridges, roads, harbors, fortresses, canals) as architectural objects into the urban, rural ensemble and landscape, applied new building materials and structures. They reworked the principles of Greek architecture, and above all the order system: they combined the order with an arched structure.

Equally important in the development of Roman culture was the art of Hellenism, with its architecture gravitating towards grandiose scales and urban centers. But the humanistic beginning, the noble grandeur and harmony that form the basis of Greek art, in Rome gave way to tendencies to exalt the power of the emperors, the military power of the empire. Hence large-scale exaggerations, external effects, false pathos of huge structures.

The variety of buildings and the scale of construction in ancient Rome vary significantly compared to Greece: a colossal number of huge buildings are being erected. All this required a change in the technical foundations of construction. Performing the most complex tasks with the help of old technology has become impossible: in Rome, fundamentally new structures are being developed and widely used - brick-concrete, which allow solving the problems of covering large spans, speeding up construction many times over, and - which is especially important - limiting the use of qualified craftsmen by moving construction processes on the shoulders of low-skilled and unskilled slave workers.

Approximately in the IV century. BC e. mortar is used as a binder (first in rubble masonry), and by the II century. to p. e. a new technology for the construction of monolithic walls and vaults based on mortars and fine aggregate stone has developed. An artificial monolith was obtained by mixing mortar and sand with crushed stone called "Roman concrete". Hydraulic additions of volcanic sand - pozzolana (after the name of the area where it was taken from) made it waterproof and very durable. This caused a revolution in construction. Such laying was carried out quickly and allowed experimenting with the form. The Romans knew all the advantages of baked clay, made bricks of various shapes, used metal instead of wood to ensure the fire safety of buildings, rationally used stone when laying the foundation. Some of the secrets of Roman builders have not yet been unraveled, for example, the "Roman malt" solution is a mystery to chemists even now.

The squares of Rome and other cities were decorated with triumphal arches in honor of military victories, statues of emperors and prominent public people of the state. Triumphal arches are a permanent or temporary monumental framing of the passage (usually arched), a solemn structure in honor of military victories and other significant events. The construction of triumphal arches and columns was primarily of political importance. The 30-meter column of Trajan was decorated with a spiral frieze 200 meters long depicting the military exploits of Trajan, crowned with a statue of the emperor, at the base of which an urn with his ashes was immured.

The most significant domed structure of the ancient world is the Pantheon (from the Greek Pentheion - a place dedicated to all the gods). This is a temple in the name of all the gods, personifying the idea of ​​unity of the numerous peoples of the empire. The main part of the Pantheon is a Greek round temple, completed by a dome with a diameter of 43.4 m, through the holes of which light penetrates into the interior of the temple, striking in its grandeur and simplicity of decoration.

The basilica served as an administrative building in which the Romans spent most of the day. The second part of the day was connected with rest and took place in the baths. Baths were a complex combination of buildings and facilities associated with recreation, sports and hygiene. They contained rooms for gymnastics and athletics, lounges for relaxation, conversations, performances, libraries, medical offices, baths, swimming pools, commercial premises, gardens and even a stadium. Baths accommodated about a thousand or more people.

The terms were associated with the consumption of a large amount of water, so a special branch of the water supply was connected to them - aqueducts (bridge-water supply). Heating was carried out by boiler installations in the cellars. Aqueducts brought water to Rome at a distance of several tens of kilometers. Thrown across the river beds, they presented an amazing picture of a continuous openwork arcade - single-tier, two- or even sometimes three-tier. Made of stone, with clear proportions and silhouette, these structures are wonderful examples of the unity of architectural forms and structures.

Among the public buildings of Ancient Rome, a large group is made up of spectacular buildings. Of these, the most famous to this day is the Colosseum - an amphitheater, a giant oval building in the form of a bowl. In the center there was an arena, and under the stands there were rooms for speakers. The Colosseum was built in the 70s - 90s. n. e. and accommodated 56 thousand spectators.

A large group of buildings consisted of residential buildings of various types, including palaces and country villas. One-story mansions (domuses) are especially characteristic of Rome. Apartment buildings were also built - insuls. The interiors of both public and residential buildings were decorated with sculpture, murals, and mosaics. The murals visually expanded the space of the premises, being a wonderful and varied decor. The floors were decorated with mosaics. An important difference between Roman decor is the great complexity and richness of forms and materials. Using various ornamental motifs, they created the most bizarre combinations, changing the construction systems, weaving additional and diverse details into the compositions.

Sculpture of Ancient Rome

In the field of monumental sculpture, the ancient Romans were far behind the Greeks and did not create monuments as significant as the Greek ones. But they enriched the plastic with the disclosure of new aspects of life, developed a new everyday and historical relief, which constituted the most important part of the architectural decor.

The best heritage of Roman sculpture was the portrait. As an independent type of creativity, it has developed since the beginning of the 1st century. BC e. The Romans understood this genre in a new way: unlike the Greek sculptors, they closely and vigilantly studied the face of a particular person with his unique features. In the portrait genre, the original realism of Roman sculptors, observation and the ability to generalize observations in a certain artistic form were most clearly manifested. Roman portraits historically recorded changes in the appearance of people, their customs and ideals.

The Romans were the first to use monumental sculpture for propaganda purposes: they installed equestrian and foot statues in the forums (squares) - monuments to outstanding personalities. In honor of memorable events, triumphal structures were erected - arches and columns.

26.02.2015 Last update date: 03/04/2020

Rome is one of the oldest cities in the world and for many centuries it was the largest center of social and political life. Religion occupied a special place in the life of the ancient Romans. The first temples dedicated to the pagan Gods began to be erected as early as the royal period, around the 6th century BC. These most ancient temples of Rome have survived to this day - their ruins can still be seen in Rome today. Let's get to know them.

The ruins of the ancient temple of Vesta, dedicated to the Roman goddess of the hearth, are located in the oldest part of the Eternal City, in the Roman Forum. Presumably the temple appeared in the VI-V centuries BC. The building, round in plan, was surrounded on the outside by a colonnade. The sacred fire was constantly burning in the temple, which was maintained by the priestesses of the goddess Vesta - the vestals, and inside there was a cache that kept sacred relics.

Contemporaries can see only three fifteen-meter columns, an altar, as well as the source of Yuturna, whose water was considered healing.

One of the most ancient religious buildings of Ancient Rome, which was lucky enough to survive to this day, is the temple of Saturn. Its ruins can be seen in the Roman Forum. Saturn - the God of earth and fertility, in ancient times was especially revered by the Romans, temples were erected to him and new cities were named after him. According to legend, in ancient times, Italy was called Saturn's land.

The Temple of Saturn was erected at the foot of the Capitoline Hill in the second half of the 5th century BC. During its history, the building burned down more than once during fires, but it was restored. Today, only a few columns of the portico and part of the foundation have survived. On the frieze you can see the inscription in Latin:

SENATUS POPULUSQUE ROMANUS INCENDIO CONSUMPTUM RESTITUIT

Which translates as: Senate and people of Rome restored destroyed by fire».

During the Republican period, the treasury was located under the temple, where not only the Roman treasury was stored, but also important state documents.

Portun's Temple is one of the few ancient buildings that managed to survive to this day. In ancient Roman mythology, Portun was considered the god of doors, keys and cattle, the guard of entrances and exits. The temple is located in the Bull Forum. In republican times, there was a small port and a market where livestock was traded.

The first temple of Portun appeared in the 3rd century BC, but the building that can be seen today dates back to the 1st century BC. From the previous building, only a part of the foundation, found during excavations, has been preserved.

The temple is the oldest surviving marble building in Rome. It was built around 120 BC. at the Bull Forum, not far from the Temple of the Portun. Dedicated to the hero of ancient Greek mythology, the deified Hercules, whose cult through the Greek colonists spread to Italy.

The legendary ancient Roman commander and statesman Gaius Julius Caesar was the second in history, after the founder of Rome, Romulus, to be deified by a Roman. Just two years after the brutal assassination of Caesar, starting in 42 BC. the construction of a temple in his honor began. Unfortunately, only a small part of it has survived to this day, but the ruins that can be seen today in its place give a good idea of ​​how impressive in size this building was more than two thousand years ago.

Three tall columns and part of the podium - this is all that has been preserved from the temple of Venus the Ancestor in the forum of Caesar. It was erected in 46 BC. at the direction of the great Julius Caesar in gratitude to Venus, fertility, beauty and love, for help in the victory over Pompey. The cult of Venus was of particular importance in the life of the ancient Romans, who considered her their patroness.

The surviving ruins of the temple are located in the Imperial Forums, or Fori imperiali, in the center of the Forum of Augustus, commissioned by the first Roman emperor in the 2nd year of our era. It was a majestic building, richly decorated with white marble, sculptures of kings and great Roman generals, sacred statues of gods and mythological characters.

In 79 AD, a temple was erected in the Roman Forum in honor of the two deified Flavian emperors - Vespasian and his son Titus. Only a few columns remained from the majestic temple, as well as some bas-reliefs, which are now kept in museums.

The temple of all the gods - the Pantheon - is located in the Rotunda Square, or Piazza della Rotonda, in the historic center of Rome. This building was built by order of Emperor Hadrian in 126 AD. e. To this day, it remains a functioning temple. The Pantheon is a unique example of ancient Roman architecture; its design features testify to the great achievements in the field of ancient engineering.

Many prominent personalities of the past are buried in the Pantheon, including the Italian kings Umberto I and Vittorio Emmanuele II, Queen Margherita of Savoy, as well as famous Renaissance painters and architects Rafael Santi, Baldassare Peruzzi and others.

According to historians, the most majestic religious building of Ancient Rome was a temple erected to the glory of the goddesses Venus and Roma, the patrons of the Eternal City. It was consecrated in 135 AD. e., during the reign of Hadrian. The emperor himself was the architect of this monumental structure.

The ruins that can be seen today near the Colosseum give an idea of ​​the size of the ancient structure. The pedestal on which the temple was erected is 145 meters long and 100 meters wide.

Modern Rome is not just a city with a long, centuries-old history, it is a real open-air museum, the exhibits of which surprisingly find a place among modern buildings. One such example is the temple of Hadrian, located on Stone Square (Piazza di Pietra). Part of the ancient Roman structure turned out to be built into a 17th-century building designed by Carlo Fontana.

The temple to the glory of the deified emperor Hadrian was erected by his adopted son and successor Antoninus Pius in 141-145 AD.

The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina is one of the few well-preserved pre-Christian temples of the Forum. By decree of Emperor Antoninus Pius, who was essentially a deeply religious person, a temple was erected in the Roman Forum in about the middle of the 2nd century in honor of his late wife Faustina. When the emperor died, an eagle was released into the sky at the farewell ceremony, which symbolized the deification of Antoninus. On the frieze of the portico you can see the Latin inscription:

DIVO ANTONINO ET DIVAE FAUSTINAE EX S(enatus) C(onsulto)

which is translated from Latin as: Divine Antoninus and Divine Faustina by decision of the Senate».

One of the largest buildings located in the Roman Forum is the basilica dedicated to the emperors Maxentius and Constantine. The height of the arches of the basilica, built in 312, was 39 meters, and the area of ​​just one nave exceeded four thousand square meters.

The ancient Romans came here not only to worship the gods and perform religious rites, important state meetings and meetings of the city council were held here. From an architectural point of view, the basilica resembles the baths of Caracalla and the baths of Diocletian.

If you are interested in this topic and want to learn more about, follow our publications. We try to convey to our readers a lot of useful information from the life of the Eternal City and outstanding historical figures.

strikes the imagination. Almost 3,000 years of the eventful history of the Roman lands more than adorned the city with masterpiece architecture of varying degrees of antiquity and importance, different styles and directions of architecture. From the ruins of ancient walls, arches and temples, to twentieth-century buildings such as the construction of Termini Station. In the capital of Italy, at almost any step, one can admire the harmonious and refined architecture of Rome in the implementation of artistic ideas.

Finding out in detail the dates of the construction of many buildings of the architecture of Rome is not at all easy - and is it necessary, in this case, to find out the encyclopedic authenticity; because when feelings often prevail over the mind. But even the most poorly prepared traveler in world history can distinguish an ancient Roman temple with a Christian basilica: there are pagan chic porticos, columns and passages, here - ascetic modesty of lines and an emphasis on the spiritual at the expense of the physical.

The architecture of Rome is a reflection of the main historical and cultural periods of the formation of the capital of Rome. In general, the historical architecture of Rome can be divided into a number of large temporary groups: ancient buildings, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the buildings of the New Age.

Architecture of Rome: Antiquity

The monuments of ancient architecture of Rome are almost the main reason for the interest of international groups of travelers, every year almost an onslaught of exciting Roman sights.

Palatine Hill - the place where Rome appeared as a city - their greatest concentration per unit area. The Roman Forum and the Colosseum, the baths of Caracalla, circuses and amphitheatres, pagan altars of Saturn and Vulcan, the arches of Septimius Severus and Constantine, many temples and the ruins of residential areas with amazing mosaics - this is only a small part of ancient architecture.

Connoisseurs of Christian antiquity will be delighted with a visit to the churches of Santa Constanta and San Clemente. And also from the dungeons of the church of St. Agnes, in which the pioneers of the new religion hid from imperial persecution.

The symbol of Rome and Italy in general, acquired its current name because of the gigantic statue of the mad Nero (“colossus”) placed in front of it, but it was originally known as the Flavian Amphitheater. Built in the first century, the amphitheater became the largest building for mass entertainment in the entire Roman Empire. The diameters of the oval of the structure are 156 and 188 m, in height - almost 50! No wonder that such open spaces could accommodate more than 50,000 Romans who wanted to see spectacles.

Architecture of Rome: Colosseum

The Colosseum survived, in fact, not flawlessly. The frantic history of the region predisposed to accelerated deterioration of the structure (by the way, the first preserved Roman amphitheater in the world is located in Tunisian El Jem; it often plays the role of the Colosseum in the cinema), but the former greatness has not disappeared: here, with their mouths open, travelers stand in front of suite of arches, the last of which disappears somewhere high in the sky.

In order to avoid long queues at the entrance to the Colosseum, we buy tickets in advance via the Internet.

The legendary architecture of Rome includes the Roman Forum - at one time the central market, and now the square that fills the center of the ancient part of the city. It is the epicenter of the social and political life of Roman citizens. It is from there that the current meaning of the word “forum” originates.

It must be borne in mind that the Forum is not the easiest example of Roman architecture in terms of perception. Many ruins here look ruined to such an extent that the imagination impotently subsides. Therefore, it is worth getting ready that only the most knowledgeable or stubborn will be able to admire the ancient architecture of Rome in full. As a result, you need to keep in mind that in the summer the sun bakes mercilessly here.

Near the forum at first there were pagan sanctuaries. With the collapse of the empire, it lost its social significance and was practically overgrown with weeds, until the Christians began to build their temples on it. In the 19-20 centuries, archaeological excavations began here, as a result of which the forum received modern cultural significance.

At present, the forum concentrates many ancient architectural artifacts near it, for example, the Sacred Road, the Capitol, the Temple of Saturn and so on. You can approach it from Foli Imperiali Street or from the Capitol, bypassing the Capitoline Descent from Foro Romano Street. Another road to the forum passes through the Temple of Concord, the Portico of the Blessing Gods, the Mamertine Prison, which also makes it possible to get acquainted with these monuments of ancient architecture in Rome.

Baths of Caracalla

The bathhouse, something not at all alien to a Russian person, was quite in demand in Ancient Rome. But the ancient Roman baths-saunas were called differently - terms. They went there to warm up, swim, and at the same time talk, sort out business issues, find suitable partners for their ancient Roman business.

The baths were built at the beginning of the 3rd century AD under the emperor who ruled under the name of Septimius Bassian, but the most famous, as is often the case with Roman emperors, by the nickname Caracalla preserved by historians.

It is amazing that the large-scale, grandiose and chic building of the Baths of Caracalla in terms of its functionality was “only” public baths, which promised the visitor, however, many hours of varied relaxation, both bathing and swimming, and sports, and also intellectual. It was a huge public building, stunning in its size and luxury of decoration. One can insist that the Baths of Caracalla are as majestic and monumental as the Colosseum or the Mausoleum of Hadrian.

In order to avoid long queues at the entrance to the Baths of Caracalla, we buy tickets in advance via the Internet.

Middle Ages

The not very prosperous Middle Ages tangibly worsened the appearance of the Eternal City during the vandal invasions, and gave a number of sights to the architecture of Rome. One of the most famous is the castle of Sant'Angelo on the western bank of the Tiber. Feudal turrets, loopholes and halls with high dark ceilings, combined with powerful battlements in the literal sense of impenetrable fortress walls, give a visual representation of the disturbing life in those days.

It makes sense to visit the church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva: although its facade was restored in the 19th century, the original medieval style of Rome's architecture was carefully preserved. It makes sense to visit the temple of Santa Maria del Anima, built at the end of the 14th century for the needs of pilgrims in Rome.

Architecture of Rome: Castel Sant'Angelo

The unique architecture of Rome is the Castel Sant'Angelo. The construction of the Castel Sant'Angelo began in Rome as early as 135. During its almost 2000th history, it was remodeled more than once and used as a castle itself, and was also a tomb, the residence of popes, a storehouse and, of course, a dungeon. Now in the castle of the Holy Angel is the Military History Museum, where travelers can see the Secret Archive, the Treasure Hall, the papal apartments, the loggia of Paul III, the hall of Clement VII, the courtyard of Alexander VI and many other things - more than 50 rooms that form a real labyrinth!

The building acquired its name in 590, when, during the plague, Pope Gregory the Great had a vision in which the Archangel Michael was on the roof, sheathing his sword. This meant that the raging disaster had come to an end. Just after that, the fortress began to be called the Castel Sant'Angelo.

Renaissance

Much of the architecture of Rome that can currently be seen is of the Renaissance period - the restoration of the classical canons of harmony after the gloomy Middle Ages. By the way, for the comfortable radial arrangement of the streets, Rome should be grateful just to the urban planners of the Renaissance. Among the buildings of this period, the most attention is focused on the architectural dominant of Rome - St. Peter's Cathedral and the Sistine Chapel, as well as many secondary churches and temples.

It is worth paying attention to the graceful domes of the Renaissance buildings going up: it is possible to climb on a number of them (for example, on the highest point of Rome - the dome of St. . Well, at the end of the Renaissance in the architecture of Rome, baroque blossoms in a riotous color, with all its ornate bas-reliefs, rounded marble Cupids and tropical gypsum flora. For baroque sensations, you should go to its three chic fountains, and you should not miss the colonnade of St. Peter's Cathedral.

The heart of the Vatican and the whole Catholic community, St. Peter's Basilica is one of the main attractions of Rome's architecture. Here it is possible to take a bird's-eye view of ancient Rome, admire the interior of the cathedral from the top of the dome, attend the mass and even be blessed by the pontiff.
St. Peter's Basilica is, without embellishment, history itself, realized in stone.

The list of famous people who in one way or another had a hand in its architecture and interior will fill more than one page, and within its walls the fate of the whole world, states and peoples was decided. The history of the cathedral dates back to the 4th century with the construction of a simple basilica over the alleged burial place of the Apostle Peter. Until the 15th century, the structure was no different. And in 1506, by papal decree, it was planned to remake the basilica into a monumental cathedral, the center of Catholicism and a symbol of the power of the pontiff.

In order to avoid long queues at the entrance to St. Peter's Basilica, we buy tickets in advance via the Internet.

Modern architecture of Rome

The architecture of Rome of the modern era in Rome is also represented in large numbers, in no small part due to construction during the time of Italian fascism and the rule of Mussolini. Within the revival of the idea of ​​great Rome and the great Romans, the architecture of Rome of that time came out pompous, pretentious, cumbersome and harsh.

Most of it is concentrated on the western bank of the Tiber River and in the Prati region. One example of the architecture of Rome in the early 20th century is the Palace of Justice.

But among the ponderous new imperial buildings, there are also true masterpieces, for example, the modernist building of Termini Station, completed in 1950, with a travertine facade and metal panel inserts, a symbol of modern, vibrant Rome.

The Palace of Justice is one of the most famous landmarks of the architecture of Rome and Italy in general. Currently, the building is the residence of the Supreme Court of Cassation, it is located in the Prati area, near the Castel Sant'Angelo. One of its main strengths is its exterior: a lot of decorative elements in the form of statues and stucco are concentrated on the castle. When visiting Rome, be sure to look at this amazing structure.

The beginning of the construction of the castle fell on March 14, 1888. During its construction, Giuseppe Zanarrdelli, the keeper of the state seal, was present. It was he who defended the fact that the Palace was built in the Prati area. Then in that part of Rome there were already judicial institutions, but the Palace of Justice became the largest of them. For the construction, platforms were needed, which were created from concrete. During the construction, excavations were carried out and many sarcophagi were found.

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The chapter “Building materials, construction equipment, structures” of the subsection “Architecture of the Roman Republic” of the section “Architecture of Ancient Rome” from the book “The General History of Architecture. Volume II. Architecture of the Ancient World (Greece and Rome)”, edited by B.P. Mikhailov.

Stone was the main building material in a mountainous country rich in its various varieties and volcanic rocks. The most convenient for processing were varieties of soft tuff - gray, yellowish or brownish in color. Hard limestone, travertine, was highly valued and was used extremely sparingly during almost the entire period of the republic. It was used by architects only in places of the greatest load of the building in the corner parts and in those details where porous tuff, which was easily weathered, was inappropriate. Outside, stone buildings were often covered with a light layer of knocking. Mostly cult and public buildings and engineering structures were erected from stone. Dwellings were built of raw brick. From the end of the 2nd century burnt bricks of various shapes came into use. Shafts of columns were laid out from shaped round or pentagonal bricks (Fig. 1). By the end of the 1st century BC. hollow brick blocks were used in the walls of the thermae for the installation of a heating system in which hot air circulated (Fig. 2).

At the end of the period of the republic, white marble, both local and imported from Greece, began to be used for the decoration of temples, public buildings and rich dwellings.

In the art of building and stone processing, the Etruscans had a certain influence on the Romans. The remains of ancient Roman buildings are made of large stones of irregular shape. In addition to polygonal masonry, square masonry was also mastered early. For the period V-III centuries. BC e. The Romans improved their construction technique by developing the so-called "normal" masonry of blocks in the shape of a parallelepiped of different sizes (on average 60X60X120 cm). Several methods of this masonry were used: from the same spoon rows of blocks; from spoons with rare pokes; from alternating rows of spoons and pokes, as well as observing the rhythmic alternation in each row of pokes and spoons (Fig. 3).

By the 3rd century BC. under the influence of the Greeks, the processing of the outer side of the blocks improved and various methods of rustication were developed. To lift and move heavy stone blocks at construction sites, simple cranes were used (Fig. 4).

In addition to the post-beam system, a false arch and a false vault were used in the structures. By the end of the III century. BC. is the appearance of Roman concrete, which opened up great opportunities in construction.

The development of Roman concrete began with the use of lime mortar in rubble masonry. A similar building technique was widespread in Hellenistic times. The difference between Roman concrete and conventional lime mortars is that instead of sand, it used pozzolans - volcanic sands named after the place of extraction (the city of Pozzuoli - the ancient Puteoli). The use of pozzolan instead of sand in mortar was due to the lack of good grades of sand in this part of Italy. Pozzolans proved to be the best astringent in the mortar, as they made it water-tight, strong, and set quickly. Initially, concrete was only used to fill the space between the hewn stone walls. The dimensions of the stones laid in concrete gradually decreased, the mixture became more and more homogeneous, and the concrete thus turned into an independent building material, although the facing of the outer surfaces with stone was preserved. Initially, the wall surface consisted of small irregularly shaped stones connected to the core of the wall and to each other with concrete mortar. This is the so-called irregular facing - incert (opus incertum). Gradually, there appears (from the 90s of the 1st century BC) a tendency to give the stones more and more regular shape, and, finally, from the middle of the 1st century. BC. reticulat is used - mesh masonry (opus reticulatum), in which the outer surface of the concrete wall is lined with small, carefully laid pyramidal stones. Their flat bases go out and form a mesh pattern, and the pointed ends are immersed in the concrete core of the wall (Fig. 5). The corners of the walls and the lintels of the openings were formed by masonry of large blocks. Samples of early concrete technology have come down to us in a small number. This is due to the fact that initially concrete was used mainly not in monumental buildings, but in dwellings and small structures, for which a quickly obtained and inexpensive wall material was needed. The concrete technique also had the advantage that it required a much smaller number of skilled construction workers and allowed extensive use of slave labor.

In parallel, there was a development of arched-vaulted structures, which were used in the architecture of the ancient East, sometimes found in Greece (Priene, Pergamum, etc.). The question of whether arched-vaulted structures were introduced into the architecture of Rome from outside or independently invented by Roman architects cannot currently be considered definitively resolved.

The first appearance of the wedge arch in Rome dates back to the 4th century. BC. In the III-II centuries. BC. the number of arched-vaulted structures increases, especially since the end of the 2nd century. BC.

The combination of concrete technology and arched-vaulted structures, which provided unprecedented opportunities, had a huge impact on the development of Roman architecture. Only with the help of such construction techniques could such outstanding architectural structures as the Roman aqueducts, the Colosseum and the Pantheon be created.

The first of the monumental structures that have come down to us in this new type of technology is the portico of the Aemilia, which was a huge warehouse of grain in Emporia (the port of Rome down the Tiber). Large trade operations took place here. Initially, the Emporium was a simple unloading area, and the portico of the Aemilia was a temporary structure. In 174 BC a portico building was built (Fig. 6). It was a large rectangular building, elongated along the embankment (487X60 m), divided inside into 50 short transverse naves by 49 rows of pillars. The building rose in steps from the banks of the Tiber, and each nave was covered with a stepped cylindrical vault with a span of 8.3 m. On the facade of hewn tuff, each nave corresponded to a section separated from neighboring pilasters. Each nave is expressed on the facade: at the bottom with a large arched span, at the top with two smaller windows, also with a semicircular completion. The walls of the building are made of gray concrete of very good quality, their surface is lined with incert; The corners of the building and the wedge-shaped arches above the door and window openings were made from rectangular blocks of the same material. The portico of Aemilia was an outstanding monument of the early Roman building art.

Here, for the first time in a building of such a grandiose scale, the merging of the vaulted-arched principle of construction with concrete technology has been achieved. Such a developed design probably points to a long previous evolution.

The purpose of the building corresponded to the simplicity of its forms. The repetition of one standard element on the facade 50 times gave the building scale and emphasized the utility of its purpose.

Such huge constructions were carried out in an exceptionally short time. The grandiose Colosseum was built in five years, and aqueducts 100 or more kilometers long, along with substructures and bridges, “at the places where they crossed river valleys, the Romans managed to build in two or three years (the term of authority of the aedile - the head of construction, elected by the Senate). Construction was usually bid and carried out by contractors who were interested in the best organization of the whole, skillfully combining the labor of a huge mass of unskilled slaves and a small number of experienced architect-builders. Therefore, when designing, the typification of the main structural elements, the multiplicity of their dimensions per foot and modularity were widely used, which made it possible to divide the work into identical simple operations. The organization of labor at Roman construction sites was very high.