Ancient Rome set the premiere example of a modern city; one that would be copied and improved countless times. The information outlined below represents some of the crucial data influencing the urban design of the city as well as the daily lives of the inhabitants.
- The forum was a central meeting place located in the heart of the city where citizens and politicians would gather to discuss pertinent issues, broker business deals, and generally congregate. As time went by, and the Roman Empire grew in splendor and size, more and more emphasis was placed on the Forum (in addition to more forums being constructed).
- Like many modern cities, traffic posed a huge problem, so in an effort to reduce congestion any vehicle with wheels was outlawed except for the 2 hours around sunrise and sunset.
- In one of the earliest examples of internal spatial structures of cities, ancient Rome can be represented by the sector model in the early years, that is, clear residential patterns based on affluence are present. The city’s poor were concentrated to the east of the original forum in an area known as the subura. As the city grew progressively larger and more advanced, more and more forums were constructed under different emperors. As these additional forums were built, business districts and markets would spring up in the immediate area, thus creating multiple centers of commerce in the city. During the height of its power in antiquity, the city of Rome had made a spatial shift away from the sector model and resembled more closely the multiple nuclei model, despite the fact that these multiple nuclei were all in close proximity.
- Public Housing in Ancient Rome:
- The affluent of Rome lived in multi-roomed houses called domus. Despite the fact the vast majority of the city wasn’t wealthy enough to live in domus, they made up a disproportionately high percentage of the city landscape, upwards of 30%.
- Most citizens of Rome lived in what many would describe as an ancient apartment; multi-leveled buildings called insulas. These buildings were fairly simplistic in nature, without indoor plumbing and with little insulation from the weather. As a result, the inhabitants of insulas would have to venture to public wells for a steady water supply.
- Education in Ancient Rome
- While Rome in antiquity featured few if any schools, education still played a crucial role in the upbringing of children in society.
- The majority of the basic knowledge was taught through the medium of family life. Many of the rudimentary skills for farming, craftsmanship, and warfare were passed down generation by generation.
- The children of Rome’s affluent were often schooled by private tutors in the fields of the classics and philosophy, as well as many of the prominent Greek works, such as the Homeric and Hesiodic epics.
- Slavery in Ancient Rome
- Slaves played a crucial role in not only the construction of ancient Rome but also the everyday lives of Rome’s many citizens. Many menial or lesser tasks were assigned to slaves, such as woodworking, beauticians, and messengers; however, it was not uncommon for slaves to also hold more prominent positions in business and to some extent, government.
- The wealth and prestige of a man in Rome was often based on the sheer number of slaves owned.
- Ironically, the fact that slaves were employed in such great numbers during the construction and rise of Rome probably aided its downfall. Through a relatively simple process called manumission, it was possible for a slave to receive full citizenship and freedom. Over time, when enough slaves went through this process, Rome experienced a massive lack of manpower which served as a contributing factor in the eventual downfall of Rome.