Roman Architecture

519 Pages·2016·6.57 MB·English

by  Sear F.

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For Molly Cotton
First published in Great Britain 1982
by B. T. Batsford Ltd
This paperback edition first published 1998
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Transferred to Digital Printing 2008
© 1982 Frank Sear
The right of Frank Sear to be identified as the Author of this
Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British
Library
ISBN 0–415–20093–8
eISBN 9781134635771
Publisher’s Note
The publisher has gone to great lengths to ensure the quality
of this reprint but points out that some imperfections in the
original may be apparent.
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Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgments
List of Illustrations
1Republican Rome
2Roman Building Types
3The Age of Augustus
4Roman Architects, Building Techniques and Materials
5The Julio-Claudians
6Two Roman towns: Pompeii and Ostia
7The Flavians
8Trajan and Hadrian
9North Africa
10The European Provinces
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11The Eastern Provinces
12The Late Empire
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
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Foreword
In writing this book I often found myself mentally explaining
and discussing difficult points with the students I have taught
in London, Oxford and Adelaide, who always find Roman
architecture more difficult than Greek; perhaps not
surprisingly because it covers such a large time span and is
the product of such culturally and ethnically diverse people.
The fact that the Romans were also skilful engineers makes it
an even more complex subject. Bearing this in mind I have
aimed to be clear rather than comprehensive. I have selected
what I regard as the most significant buildings of each era or
province, and have in each case attempted to put them into
their historical or cultural context. Another author may have
chosen different buildings; the choice is a subjective one and I
will not pretend that I have not included many of my own
favourite buildings.
The first eight chapters are mainly concerned with Italy and I
have selected the end of Hadrian’s reign as the most suitable
point to break off to discuss the provinces. The Late Empire,
when provincial cities were as important as the capital, draws
all the threads together and is a fitting subject for the last
chapter. Rather than constantly interrupt the narrative with
explanations about materials and techniques I have devoted a
separate chapter to these matters. I was also aware that a
purely chronological and geographical approach neglects the
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development of particular buildings, such as theatres, houses
and baths. Therefore I have summarized building types in a
separate chapter.
My first contact with architectural history was when I was
reading Classics at Cambridge under the guidance of Hugh
Plommer. I am grateful to him for reading the manuscript of
this book and offering much helpful advice. I was fortunate to
have as my research supervisor Donald Strong, whose many
perceptive articles on Roman architectural ornament have
greatly added to our understanding of the subject. John Ward
Perkins enlarged my knowledge of Roman buildings when I
was a Scholar at the British School at Rome. I was fortunate
to accompany him on several of his trips around the Roman
Campagna, and once to the top of the Pantheon dome. His
recent death has robbed the world of a foremost authority on
Roman Architecture. Martin Fredericksen was able to read
some of this book when it was in draft and discussed much of
it with me when he visited Australia in 1979. Of younger
scholars I would like to mention Janet DeLaine of Adelaide
University whose grasp of engineering principles has saved
me from many a pitfall in my
chapter on building methods. She is also responsible for many
of the drawings which illustrate the text. The errors, which I
fear are many in a work of this kind, are all mine.
FS
ADELAIDE 1982
I am pleased to be able to offer this revised edition, in which I
have made some corrections and alterations to the text and
added a full bibliography.
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