Brief History of Roman Contributions Essay

Submitted By acer4u
Words: 739
Pages: 3

Introduction to Humanities Spring 2013

When In Rome... The roman Empire was vast and powerful so much so that we still have bits of it all around us today. From epic writings to building techniques even the modern calendar are all thing we can attribute to the great and powerful Roman Empire. While it might not be as great as it once was it is still a part of our lives and we are still influenced by its achievements. As such it is important not to forget what those are. One such great accomplishment of the Roma Empire is their vast writings or Epic poems. These poems often told of the heroic deeds or quest that heroes would go on. Writers such as Virgil wrote extensive epic poems that spanned multiple books. Most famous was his work titles "The Aeneid" it tells the Tale of Aeneas and the foundation of what would become Rome. The epic poem consists of 12 books in dactylic hexameter verse which describe the journey of Aeneas, a prince fleeing the sack of Troy, to Italy, his battle with the Italian prince Turnus, and the foundation of a city from which Rome would emerge. Some section of this epic poem are still used today in Latin Classes all around the world and where considered Cannon for anyone wanting to learn Latin up until the 1960's. It is important to remember it is not just the great poems that have survived the fall of the roman empire. When people say "they just don't make them like they used too" no architects come to mind faster than the ancient Romans. To this day there are still Roman aqueducts that can be seen and ancient Roman brides that are still in use. One of the biggest reason for this is the Roman invention of concrete. Now most people could not tell the difference between cement and concrete, but it really is quite simple. Cement is an ingredient in concrete, see all concrete is, is a mixture of cement, water, and an aggregate. Now in the an aggregate can be anything rocks sand broken pieces of pottery, but those little shards help the cement form better and resist breaking and cracking. It is because of this discovery that many roman structures are still standing today. Also the use of arches and domes are very prevalent in Roman Architecture. Even to this day the Empire's style of architecture can still be seen throughout Europe and North America in the arches and domes of many governmental and religious buildings. Of course no discussion of Roman Architecture would be complete if we did not bring up the 2 most dominate features of Rome. the Colosseum and the Pantheon. One a place for sport and entertainment the other a temple for piety