What’s So Ancient about Rome?
Ancient Rome was one of the most advance civilizations of its time. He Ancient Romans have invented and used many things that are still useful and state of the art in modern times. The city itself is still a thriving city, where as many cities of its time have been destroyed and reduced to rubble and ruins. In a sense there are only a few things that are ancient about Rome, because of the technological advances that were made during the time of the Roman Empire, and the cities that still stand because of they were founded by the Romans.
Throughout Europe and the Mediterranean, there are Roman structures that still stand. Some of these structures are still used and inhabited today. Cities like Bath in England, Cologne in Germany, modern day Istanbul in Turkey, and of course Rome, are all cities that were founded by the Romans and have grown into thriving modern cities. These cities still feature buildings; like the bath houses in Bath (
http://www.localhistories.org/bath.html) to the Lysolph tower in Cologne (
http://www.nicecity.de/english/architecture.htm) to the Coliseum in Rome; from the days of the Romans, or buildings that have been rebuilt to what they were when the Romans first founded the city. There are hundreds of Roman ruins and old buildings throughout that still stand because of the Roman engineering technology.
The Romans were known for advancing technology that already existed alongside with the technology that they developed. Many of the Roman technologies that we still use today deal with architecture or construction. The Romans perfected the use of concrete as a building material, and used it to make arches and domes. Concrete, as the Romans made it was easier to use because it flowed better and could be poured into place, unlike other ancient forms of concrete that were mostly used as a material that bound bricks or stone together. (
http://id-archserve.ucsb.edu/arthistory/152k/concrete.html).
The Romans were also known for their sewer system within the city of Rome, and the aqueducts. The same basic idea is used for sewer systems throughout the world today. The Roman sewer system used underground pipes that took runoff water and some waste from the streets to the tunnels via drains that resemble modern storm drains. The Aqueducts were also very advanced for the time they were built. The aqueducts supplied water to many Roman towns and cities throughout Europe. The Aqueducts not only were the great arched bridges that many people think of, but water also reached the cities through tunnels. These tunnels resemble modern water pipes that provide water to most of the modern cities in the world today. (
http://www.unrv.com/culture/roman-aqueducts.php)
The great technological advances that the Romans gave us have helped modern society throughout since the time of the Roman Empire. There are things that make the Ancient Roman Civilization, well, ancient. The general culture and laws of the Roman Empire had very ancient ideals. The Twelve Tables are composed of laws that have deep roots in the ancient world. The tables state that children with deformities shall be killed (IV 1) because they were of no use to the civilization. In modern times thinking like this is unacceptable, but in those times survival and the good of the city or civilization were put before everything. The tables also say that if one man maims another’s body, then the punishment was retaliation in kind (VIII 2). Again, this “eye for an eye” thinking would never be accepted or in modern cultures. (
http://www.csun.edu/~hcfll004/12tables.html)
The Roman Empire has given the modern world many useful technologies in the form of things like concrete and a reliable and controllable water source. The Romans also have forever left their mark of how advanced they were in their amazing architecture that can still be seen throughout Europe and the Mediterranean. The Romans were advanced hundreds of years ahead of any other culture of that time in the form of technology, but what really made this civilization “ancient” was their culture and mentality about laws and human rights.
Works Cited
"A History of Bath, England." A World History Encyclopedia. Web. 04 Mar. 2010. <
http://www.localhistories.org/bath.html>.
"Monuments & Architecture in Cologne." Willkommen in K. Web. 04 Mar. 2010. .
"Roman Aqueducts." UNRV History - Roman Empire. Web. 05 Mar. 2010. .
"ROMAN CONCRETE." Mac OS X Server. Web. 05 Mar. 2010. .
"Roman Technology -." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 04 Mar. 2010. .
"THE TWELVE TABLES." California State University, Northridge. Web. 05 Mar. 2010..
.
