Architectures of the Roman World

Models, Agency, Reception

Niccolò Mugnai

• Publisher: Oxbow Books
• Year: 2023
• eBook ISBN: 9781789259957
• Topic: Architecture
• Subtopic: History of Architecture

This book collects essays by international scholars who engage with Roman-period architecture outside Rome and the Italian Peninsula, looking at the regions that formed part of the Roman Empire over a broad time frame: from the second century BCE to the third century CE. Moving beyond traditional views of 'Roman provincial architecture', the aim is to highlight the multi-faceted features of these architectures, their function, impact and significance within the local cultures, and the dynamic discourse between periphery and center. Architecture is intended in the broad sense of the term, encompassing the buildings' technological components as well as their ornamental and epigraphic apparatuses. The geographic framework under examination is a broad one: along with well-documented areas of the ancient Mediterranean, attention is also paid to the territories of north-west Europe. The discussion throughout the volume focuses on three interrelated themes – models, agency, and reception. The broader scope of these essays is to give a reinvigorated impetus to the scholarly debate on the role and influence of ancient architectures beyond the center of Empire. The book has a strong interdisciplinary character, which reflects the authors' diverse expertise in the fields of archaeology, architecture, ancient history, art and architectural history.

Table of contents

• Cover page
• Title page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• List of figures
• List of abbreviations
• 1. Architectures of the Roman World: An introduction
• 2. …incorrupti imbribus, ventis, ignibus omnique caemento firmiores? Earthen building materials in the Roman West
• 3. Unusual terracotta tiles for the vaulting of Roman baths: An investigation into the exchange and diffusion of technical knowledge in the western Roman Empire
• 4. From dry to mortared construction: Building at Nikopolis and Olympia between the first century BCE and the first century CE
• 5. Green shoots: Architectural transfer and sustainability in the architecture of the Roman provinces
• 6. Building cities on the Rhine and on the Danube: The socio-ecological diversity of Roman construction
• 7. Provincial-sized monumentality: The construction site of the Roman theatre of Augusta Raurica (Switzerland)
• 8. Building public baths outside Rome: The case study of Nora (Sardinia)
• 9. What have the Romans ever done for us? Early Roman Jerusalem as an urban centre between local tradition and Roman rule
• 10. Building and reshaping public spaces in North Africa in the early imperial period: The examples of Thugga, Lepcis Magna, and Cyrene
• 11. Responding to ‘Classical’ architecture in Roman-era Athens: Spolia, emulation, agency, and audiences
• 12. A matter of perspective: The reception of early imperial composite column capitals in Asia Minor
• 13. Where do we live? Local stonescapes and globalized architecture in Cyrenaica and Cyprus
• 14. Architectures of the Roman World: Some conclusions