Classic Civilizations – Regents Prep Questions

The Lasting Contributions of Rome. The Romans invented cement, which was stronger than stone and designed huge arches and domes with it. They also used concrete to build more than 50,000 miles of roads. This helped unify the empire.

The Romans were prodigious builders and expert civil engineers, and their thriving civilization produced advances in technology, culture and architecture that remained unequaled for centuries.

• Aqueducts.
• Concrete.
• Newspapers.
• Welfare.
• Bound Books.
• Roads and Highways.
• Roman Arches.
• The Julian Calendar.

The Romans did not invent drainage, sewers, the alphabet or roads, but they did develop them. They did invent underfloor heating, concrete and the calendar that our modern calendar is based on. Concrete played an important part in Roman building, helping them construct structures like aqueducts that included arches.

There are no ancestors today leading back to them like for example the famous Medici family from renaissance Italy. I can’t think of any Roman “last names” still in use.

The D’Cruz family, consisting of 12 siblings, now holds the Guinness World Record for oldest combined age. (CNN) A family of 12 siblings broke the Guinness World Record for highest total combined age, with the oldest at 97 and the youngest at 75.

The longest family tree in the world is that of the Chinese philosopher and educator Confucius (551–479 BC), who is descended from King Tang (1675–1646 BC). The tree spans more than 80 generations from him and includes more than 2 million members.

Gaius Appuleius Diocles

seven laps

Definition. The Circus Maximus was a chariot racetrack in Rome constructed in the 6th century BCE. Used for other events such as the Roman Games and gladiator fights, it last hosted chariot races in the 6th century.

In 410 C.E., the Visigoths, led by Alaric, breached the walls of Rome and sacked the capital of the Roman Empire. The Visigoths looted, burned, and pillaged their way through the city, leaving a wake of destruction wherever they went. The plundering continued for three days.

The Pantheon still holds the record for the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome. It is also substantially larger than earlier domes.

The most important division within Roman society was between patricians, a small elite who monopolized political power, and plebeians, who comprised the majority of Roman society. The Roman census divided citizens into six complex classes based on property holdings.

the Colosseum

The spectacular design, proportions, elegance and harmony are a striking reminder of the architecture of the great Roman Empire and this wonder keeps locals and visitors alike in awe with its beauty and magnificence even today.

Even today, almost 2000 years after its construction, the breathtaking pantheon is a remarkable building to see. The spectacular design, proportions, elegance and harmony are a striking reminder of the architecture of the great Roman Empire. 2 It is the best preserved Ancient Roman monument.

1. THE ORIGINAL PANTHEON BURNED DOWN. Marcus Vispanius Agrippa, a Roman statesman and architect, constructed the Pantheon starting around 27 BCE on his property in the Campus Martius. It was destroyed in a fire, however, around 80 CE, and a second temple built on the site was also ravaged by fire.

Made primarily from bricks and concrete, the Pantheon consists of three sections: a portico with granite columns, a massive domed rotunda and a rectangular area connecting the other two sections. Measuring 142 feet in diameter, the domed ceiling was the largest of its kind when it was built.

“The crystals formed because of a reaction that took place over time between the lime and volcanic matter in the mortar,” says Sullivan, and “helped prevent the spread of microscopic cracks by reinforcing interfacial zones, which researchers called ‘the weakest link of modern cement-based concrete.

Among those buried in its necropolis are Voltaire, Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Émile Zola, Jean Moulin, Louis Braille, Jean Jaurès and Soufflot, its architect. In 1907 Marcellin Berthelot was buried with his wife Mme Sophie Berthelot. Marie Curie was interred in 1995, the first woman interred on merit.

While both were built to honor gods, the Parthenon was built to honor Athena and the Pantheon was built to honor all of the Greek gods. The Parthenon in Athens, Greece, was built between 447 and 432 B.C.E. during the aftermath of the Persian Wars to highlight the victory of the Greeks over the Persians.

At the centre of the dome, there is a 9 metre diameter hole, the Oculus. The belief that the Oculus was built so that the rain could not get in is not true, when it rains, it also rains in the Pantheon; the floor is slightly convex so the water flows away thanks to an effective drainage system.