Roman Arch

The Greeks started building corbelled arches and creating arch shaped voussoirs. These worked well, however, they did not discover the strength or span the distances that the Romans were able to. The widest known Greek archway spans only 7.35m, whereas the Romans built many great triumphal arches to emphasise their power in victory. Marcus Vitruvius Pollio wrote about the qualities a successful arch should entail, these were: “utility, strength and aesthetics” (Vitruvius, M., 1914). He wanted them to be built according to anthropometrics; symmetry and proportions of the human body. The full potential of the arch was reached when the Romans discovered the impressive compressive strength of the arch, meaning that they could span greater distances and create great heights using these new found qualities. Some of the most notable uses of the arch can be seen through Aqueducts, vast interiors and in, potentially, the most famous arched building; the Roman Colosseum.

The pointed arch was their first invention that removed the awkward look of disproportional arches at the sides of the Romanesque cathedrals. The pointed arch also directed the weight of the vault downward to help support the massive ceilings.

Before the Roman aqueduct was engineered, the ancient Roman people depend on local water such as rainwater, springs, streams, and well water stored into cisterns or container. The water quality were a daily problem of the Romans and the droughts and drainage problems were even deadly. The engineering curiosity that implemented the rise of the Roman Empire and sustained the water solution. The Roman aqueducts was not all engineered by Roman inventions, the architects used the Greek designs like the columns and arches by the Etruscans. The aqueducts were built from a sequence of brick, stone, and special volcanic cement.

Beyond the practical uses of Arches, the Romans would build triumphal arches to celebrate victories and conquests. The most practical use of the arch was with the aqueducts which helped deliver fresh water to the Roman cities. Arches were extremely useful in most of the Roman construction, including homes, temples, colosseums, bath houses, and theaters. The technology of the arch allowed for wide open spaces, which were essential for these public areas. (Kamm, n.d.) Aqueducts.

Details: The domitian built this arch on the road leading into the Roman Forum to honor his brother, the emperor Titus, who became a god after his death. Victories fill the spandrels of the arcuated passageway. Freestanding/ triumphal arch

The integrity of the construction of the structure was imperative because the size of the audience attending the venue. Therefore, In order to construct and assure the integrity of the vaulted seating area around the entirety of the Colosseum, workers used mortar and small stones while simultaneously crafting the vaults to rest upon the walls in order to carry the vast majority of the weight of the stone structure. New found ingenuity led to many of the architectural capabilities developed through the construction of the Colosseum. In addition to being a project of showmanship of Roman architecture, the project served as learning experience and benchmark upon which to place future projects. Ultimately, this allowed the Colosseum to become an engineering feat and ultimately establish Rome as a locale for exciting blood filled entertainment.

These materials were used to build specific structures and technology. First of all, whenever they had to have water travel across valleys or other open landscapes, the Romans built bridges made of arches. These arches saved materials and money, as it took less to build arches than to build a solid wall. Also, arches were much more stable than a wall and were easily repairable. It was easy for pedestrians and vehicles to pass through the arches, too. However, when

None of these aquatic innovations would have been possible without the Roman aqueduct. These aqueducts used gravity to transport water along stone, lead and concrete pipelines and into city centers. Roman aqueducts were built so well that some are still used to this day.

This particular arch, the Delicate Arch, is a prime example of a freestanding arch. A freestanding arch is the last “step” in the process of how arches form. First, we would have a solid sandstone wall. Because there is salt upheaval from the Paradox Salt in lower layers, the sandstone layers also bulge and crack, creating joints along the edge of a valley. Joints are simply the cracks formed when the rock layers are moved around. Every arch begins as a fin, which is what forms when the joints are weathered and eroded. Then, it forms a Blind Arch, which forms when a fin is too wide to break through the entire way. After a Blind Arch comes a window, in which most of the fin is still in place but there is a distinct opening through the

The arch needed to be large enough and strong enough to be able to cover the hole in the cathedral. The main question was how it would be done. Luckily, Brunelleschi, a renowned genius with engravings and clock work, came up with an idea that would prevail. He solved the problem by constructing the dome out of two centric

The aqueducts were gravity fed. Meaning that they had a slight downward slope in them to allow the water to slide down towards Rome. When the aqueduct was checked by a surveyor every so often. The surveyor would use a tool called a chorobates to make sure the slope contains its consistent five percent to a two percent gradient. The structure of the aqueducts was revolutionary in architecture in those times because according to David Macauley “When the keystone was inserted in the center, the arch was complete’ this was essential because the keystone allowed the weight to be evenly distributed along an arch.

Rome had many significant works of art. The Arch of Titus was one of them. The Arch of Titus was a Roman Triumphal art that was constructed by Domitian in 81 C.E. in Via Sacra, Rome in the foot of the Palatine hill. The Arch of Titus was constructed to commemorate the victories of Titus and Vespasian in the Jewish war. The Jewish war began because Judea was ruled by the Romans and they had no respect towards the Jewish religious traditions.

Many empires have influenced the way we live our lives. The Greco-Romans rightfully receives more credit for the way we function today. They’re responsible for improving our lives and society because our world’s high maintenance lifestyle was built upon their inventions. Everything from plumbing to weaponry has been created or influenced by this remarkable empire. My life especially has been altered because of the advancements of the Greco-Romans.

Roman arches are of great importance, not only to Rome but to the world as a whole. The arch was not invented by the Romans, as arches have been used in cultures far predating the Romans; however, the Romans did find a way to perfect the arch. Before the Romans, arches were used to support relatively small amounts of weight, such as in storerooms, these arches limited the scale of buildings they supported. The Romans however used arches to support immense amounts of weight. The reason for the arches newfound strength lies not with the shape of the arch, but within the material used to construct it. Through the invention of concrete, Romans were able to construct arches that would hold the weight of structures such as the aqueduct, which provided water to entire cities. Soon, several cultures adopted the Roman arch to support their own

One of Roman Engineering’s greatest accomplishments was the use of the arch. The arch shape is very strong, able to support great amounts of weight. This allowed Romans to build massive structures that would stand for many centuries. The Romans adapted the arch design to fit many purposes. The barrel vault is merely an elongated arch; this was used for buildings tombs and sewers. The dome is an adaptation of the arch. The dome is an arch revolved on its vertical axis. The best example of the dome in ancient Rome is the Pantheon. The basic arch was used in almost every large building in Rome. Romans also used