ITS CULTURE AND LEGACY

Ancient Rome

Greco-Roman Culture

Territories taken over were governed in the same way

By 2nd century BCE- started to adopt Greek culture

Educated Romans started to learn GreekGreek + Hellenistic + Roman culture =

Greco-Roman Culture (AKA Classical Civilization)

Adapted Greek ways and blended it into their own

Fine Arts

Learned sculpting from the Greeks

Greek sculptures known for beauty and idealism

Roman sculptures known for realistic quality (like a portrait)

Roman art served practical purpose (education)

Bas-Relief Sculpting

Bas-relief sculpting (images projecting from a flat background) peaked during reign of Augustus

Roman Mosaic

•Pictures made by setting small pieces of stone or glass onto a surface.•Most Roman villas had at least 1 colored mosaic

Frescoes

Large murals painted directly on the wallMost famous are from Pompeii

Video Clip on Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dn14wkg0mhM&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

Philosophy

Borrowed philosophy from the Greeks

Stoicism was influential because it encouraged virtue, duty, moderation, and endurance

Why would the Romans like this?

Emperor Marcus Aurelius (last good emperor) was a Stoic

Virgil’s Aeneid

Inspired by Greek literatureTook 10 years to writeEpic about AeneasModeled after Homer

Language

Latin remained the language of learning even after the fall of the Roman Empire

Official language of Roman Catholic ChurchAdopted by different peoples and developed

into (Romance Languages) French Spanish Portuguese Italian Romanian

Technology - Roman Roads

Technology: Roman Arches

Click icon to add pictureImportant architectural feature in Rome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EO1NQy4oyJs&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

Technology – Aqueducts

Click icon to add pictureDesigned to bring water into cities and townsSupported by arches

Architecture: Pantheon

Place to worship the Roman gods

Inside the Pantheon…

Colosseum

Began by Emperor Vespasian and completed by sons Titus and Domitian

Hosted:

Gladiator fights

Executions of Christians

Animals being huntedhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfSTZUEH95Q&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

The Forum

Center for Roman life: elections, speeches, trials, business affairsOriginally a marketplaceSurrounded by a few important ancient government buildings

Ptolemy

Greek-Roman citizen who lived in Egypt

Astronomy: Almanac for astronomical predictions, physical realization of the universe, identified constellations

Geography: Mapped out known world (inhabited by Rome or not) and instructed others how to map it out

Book on astrologyMusic in a mathematical light

(expanded on Pythagoras)Optics: book on vision and the eye

Medicine

More of an emphasis on public health

Built Public Bathes to keep clean

Public water systems (aqueducts)

Built medical schools

Religion

Started as Roman mythology (note where the planets got their names)

Christianity became Imperial religion and one of the most popular religions worldwide.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb8R2S-qq7o&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

Roman Law

Law should be fair and applied equally to all people

People were INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY

Burden of proof rests with the accuser rather than the accused

People should be punished for actions NOT THOUGHTS

Any law that was unreasonable or unfair could be set aside

Stemmed from the Twelve Tables