Achievements and values ​​of the culture of the civilization of ancient Rome. The artistic culture of ancient Rome briefly

The civilization of ancient Rome did not become a technical culture, although the Romans achieved a certain technical progress in the field of agricultural production.
Among the reasons that did not allow the development of technology, science is usually called the limited use of energy sources - water, wind, steam, etc. Even the muscular energy of animals was not used to the proper extent. Bull teams, donkeys, mules remained the main means of transportation and transportation of heavy loads. Horses were not widely used due to the fact that they did not know the stirrup. It appeared only in the 8th century. n. e. The wagon cart remained unknown until the 3rd century BC. n. e. This resulted in high cost and inefficiency. land transport, which did not contribute to the development of manufactory.

The technique was used in the non-productive sphere, for entertainment, in military affairs. And here the Romans had much to learn from the Greeks. Science, philosophy were also borrowed and came too late to receive original forms of development. Slavery is usually blamed for this. But in neighboring Greece, the labor of slaves was also used, but nevertheless, a deeply original scientific and philosophical thought developed here.
In its most concentrated form, ancient culture is expressed in political thinking. Politics - that's the only worthy occupation for a citizen, a free man - both the Romans and the Greeks thought so.

Polis left behind three ideas.
The first idea is the idea of ​​citizenship - membership in the policy, the city-state. Hence the involvement of the entire life of the polis, civitas.
The second idea is democracy - democracy, people's rule - the citizen's involvement in managing the life of the policy, participating in the affairs of the state.
The third idea is the idea of ​​a republic - a common cause, which means the opportunity to take one's place in the "common cause" by choice. Hence the development of the elective principle, the turnover of commanders, their accountability to the Senate, collegiality in decisions.

If the culture of Greece exhausted itself with these ideas, then ancient Rome went further - at a moment of crisis, it approved the idea of ​​a single, centralized state. Thus, he created the conditions for the spread of a single, unified culture. Moreover, Rome went even further, to the idea of ​​empire - the unlimited, undivided power of the head of state. And this extended the life of the culture of Rome in relation to the culture of Greece for almost another five centuries, but still did not save it: the Romans in the 4th century. n. e. have forgotten how to fight and even defend themselves. Suffice it to recall that after the ruin of Rome by the Vandals in 455, the Romans discussed not how to rebuild the city, but how to arrange a circus performance; they were no longer capable of more. And they submitted to the leader of the Heruli Odoacer in 476 without resistance.
Culture manifests itself most fully and completely in morality, in the moral code that each nation develops for itself. The moral norms developed by the Romans are richer than the norms of the ancient Greek polis. If the Greeks reduced all the virtues to four - justice, wisdom, courage, moderation, then the Romans did not limit their number, as well as the number of gods. A person was valued not by his individual qualities, virtues, but by their totality: the sum of all moral qualities and constituted a new wholeness - virtus, valor. But, unlike the Greek policy, where the norms came from civil society, in Rome their affirming beginning was the state. The virtues themselves acquired an existence independent of man, were imposed on him in the form of state, sacred personalities, personified in gods and emperors. Concordia (consent), Fides (fidelity), Honor (honor), Clementia (meekness), Virtus (valor) are plural norms and qualities attributed to emperors, but these are also separate deities. The Roman religion was the state religion, and the official was also the main minister - the pontiff. A certain hierarchy of values ​​has developed. Gaius Lucilius gave the following scheme:
In the first place are deeds for the benefit of the fatherland and the qualities of a person that ensure them, for example, patriotism.
Then come the values ​​aimed at the benefit of relatives - the family.
In last place were values ​​that expressed concern for one's own welfare - selfishness, individualism.
Or, as expressed in poetic form:

"We must first think about the good of the fatherland,
After - about the good of the family, and then only -
- about our

(Lucinius, 1st century BC)

The reward for virtus, that is, for the development of moral culture as the highest value, was honor, Honor, popular approval, recognition. Rome approved a whole list of honorary elective offices, cursus honorum, for which they were chosen as a reward for showing virtus.
The deeds of courageous people provided the Romans with freedom. Freedom was closely connected with independence, a dependent person could not be free. Therefore, it was believed that a position performed for money cannot be considered free: "Salary makes a person a slave," the Romans believed. Therefore, rich people were promoted to positions.

Later, when internecine, civil wars Roman society began to tear apart, new values ​​\u200b\u200bbegan to be affirmed - humanitas (humanity), and even later, during the period of the empire - urbanitas (grace, courtesy). Thus, humanism is not the original value of culture. As long as culture develops and its own contradictions do not reach developed form, society does not appreciate humanism, concern for specific person, does not cultivate it. Everything overshadows the duty, duty, necessity emanating from the state, the collective, society, that is, the organizing, rational principle. As they decompose, the center of motivation is transferred to the person himself, he becomes supreme value, a measure of assessments, the goal of culture. Although the cultures of Rome and Greece developed synchronously in time and space, the values ​​that they recognized were different. This distinction aroused interest even among the thinkers of antiquity. So, Cornelius Nepos, the famous Roman writer, drew attention to the differences in the culture of the Romans and Greeks. Nepos noted that "there will be many people who will consider compositions of this kind frivolous and not too worthy of their important heroes, as soon as they read the message about who taught the music of Epaminondas, or in the list of his virtues they will find a mention that he" gracefully danced and skillfully played the flute. So, for the Roman readers of Nepos, music lessons, dancing, playing the flute are "frivolous" activities and are not worthy of "important heroes." These will be readers, Nepos noted, "alien to Greek education, who consider correct only what is consistent with their concepts. If they find out that all peoples understand worthy and shameful not in the same way, but judge everything according to the customs of their ancestors, then they will not they will be surprised that I talk about the prowess of the Greeks, in accordance with their customs.

It was not a shame, for example, for the great Athenian citizen Kimon to marry sister because his fellow citizens adhered to the same rule; according to our customs it is considered unholy
... In almost all of Greece, it was considered a great honor to be proclaimed the winner of Olympic Games, and in all the tribes it was not considered shameful for anyone to appear on the stage, amusing the people with a spectacle; and in our country such occupations are regarded either as shameful or as low and incompatible with dignity.
And, on the contrary, much of what is considered decent by our customs, seems shameful to the Greeks. For example, which of the Romans would hesitate to bring his wife to the feast? Or whose mother of the family does not occupy the most honorable place in the house and does not happen in society?

In Greece ... a woman is invited to the table only if relatives gather, and she constantly stays only in the inner part of the house, called the gynaecium, where no one except her close relatives has access. " And then Nepos concludes: "Everything these pleasures (that is, music, dancing, singing, philosophy) are empty and, perhaps, deserving of contempt, but in Greece, especially in those days, they were revered very highly ... It is not customary for our nobility to engage in music, but dancing is considered a vice. Among the Greeks, these activities are considered pleasant and respectable.
With the aggravation of contradictions - economic, political, social, the culture of Rome also decayed, ensuring its unity and integrity for many centuries. The Roman thinkers themselves noted a certain regression of their culture, but they could not do anything. Tacitus, the famous Roman historian, reported the words of Gaius Cassius Longinus, a jurist of the early imperial era: "Measures that were taken in antiquity in any field were better and wiser, and those that subsequently changed changed for the worse." Famous poet Horace expressed the same thought in artistic form:

"What does the pernicious run of time not spoil?

After all, our parents are worse than grandfathers,

We are worse than them, but ours will be

children and grandchildren are even more vicious."

Having discovered traces of the decline of culture, the Roman society resigned itself to this, accepted it as a fatal inevitability, and did not find the strength in itself to find the Answer to the Challenge of history. Other nations will look for him.

FEDERAL AGENCY FOR EDUCATION
TVER STATE TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY

Topic: "Technical achievements of ancient Rome."

Completed by 1st year student

Checked:

G. Tver
2011

Introduction………………………………………………………… 3
Main part:……………………………………………………4

Conclusion………………………………………….... .............10

Introduction.

2. MAIN PART

2.1 Technical achievements of ancient Rome.
The population of Rome in the II century. n. e. had approximately 1 million inhabitants, and the entire population of the Greco-Roman world was about 50-60 million people. Urban and agriculture required huge material and technical costs and the activities of a large number of people employed in the field of "engineering" practice (builders, hydrologists, road builders, military engineers), in trade and the service sector (bakers, shoemakers, sculptors, tinsmiths, gunsmiths, perfumers). From the list of occupations worthy of a free man, Seneca excluded painters, sculptors, marble makers, cooks, wrestlers, athletes and others who, in his words, adapted their minds to pleasures.
All sorts of technical inventions were widely used in the organization of entertainment events. In circuses, amphitheaters, on the stage, the most complex and expensive mechanisms were used. In the Colosseum, the construction of which was completed in 80, interchangeable arenas were used, which were filled with water for the device naval battles, elevators, ingenious block systems and other achievements of engineering and technical thought.
Technical knowledge and skill were widely used in the design of all kinds of mechanical curiosities, unique toys. In the introduction to Pneumatics, Hero of Alexandria distinguishes technical devices "used for practical purposes" from devices whose purpose is "to produce surprise and admiration." Heron's "Pneumatics" describes a device that is a mechanical toy, the main element of which was a hollow ball, installed over a vessel with boiling water and driven by steam, which entered the hollow bent tubes attached to the ball. The use of steam power, due to which the ball was rotated, gave rise to the fact that some researchers began to call this device Heron's "steam turbine". However, the purpose of the mechanism described by Heron was quite definite and served solely for entertainment.
The actual state of the level of technical knowledge and their application during the period of the Empire is given by the works of Vitruvius "On Architecture", Heron of Alexandria's "Mechanic", as well as the evidence of Pliny the Elder, Seneca, Columella. By the beginning of our era, the following technological achievements in various fields of activity were used for practical needs.
In the construction business: the use of "hydraulic mixture" (concrete); the use of baked brick masonry and the use of brick-concrete vaulted technology. Architecture and construction were at their peak under Hadrian. The architect had to be knowledgeable not only in the planning of buildings or cities, but also to understand construction techniques, especially military fortifications. He also had to be able to put into practice the knowledge of mechanics in the manufacture of instruments for measuring time (sun and water clocks), in the manufacture of cranes, military devices.
In handicraft production: the invention of transparent glass and the development of glassblowing; marble facing of public and private buildings; the invention of heating systems and their use in city baths, as well as in private city houses and country villas.
In agriculture: the introduction of a rotary mill instead of a grain grater, which made it possible to use the muscular energy of animals (donkeys or mules, sometimes horses); invention of the water mill. Until now, archaeological evidence of water mills earlier than the 2nd century BC is unknown. n. e. The slow spread of water mills is explained by the fact that they were technically complex structures intended for use in large farms and required significant financial investments. The most famous complex of 16 water mills. The mills that were opened in Pompeii became more widespread - they were simple in design, driven by animal power and served small farms. The contrast between this traditional type of mill and watermills was striking in every way. Along with traditional rope presses, a screw press began to be used.
In mechanics: the invention of the screw and gear; improvement in this connection of jewelry tools and medical devices.
It can be seen from the above that, despite the achievements in certain areas of technology, ancient civilization did not become a technical civilization. Among the reasons are usually the limited use of energy sources (water, wind, etc.), even the muscular energy of animals was not used to the proper extent. Bull teams, donkeys and mules remained the main means of transportation and transportation of heavy loads. Horses were not widely used due to the fact that they did not know the stirrup (it appeared only in the 8th century AD). The shafted cart remained unknown in Rome until the 3rd century BC. n. e., and the consequence of this was the high cost and inefficiency of land transport, which, in turn, did not contribute to the development of manufactory production.
Along with the limited use of energy resources and the unsatisfactory state of land transport, they often talk about the use of low-quality metals in the creation of mechanisms. The main materials in this case were bronze and iron. Traditional medical instruments made of bronze were in use, although better steel ones were known, which, nevertheless, were used in rare cases. Iron was constantly in short supply due to imperfect smelting methods, it went mainly to the manufacture of weapons and working tools; the quality of iron left much to be desired, since the temperatures of the ancient methods of smelting were insufficient, the whole process is very complicated, and the masters themselves had a very rough idea about it. Further discoveries related to the processing of iron remained beyond the technical possibilities of the time. The use of iron on an industrial scale became possible much later thanks to two subsequent discoveries: the increase in smelting temperatures and the use of coking hard coal. To these factors, we can add the absence in the ancient period mechanical watch, compass, steerable rudder, inefficient use of sailing ships, low quality glass, cumbersome numerical numbering, etc., without which it is impossible to achieve a high level of technical progress.

2.2 Construction machinery. Archimedes screw.
Unlike Greece, Ancient Rome did not leave behind any scientific and technical heritage. An exception, perhaps, can only be military and construction equipment. A description of all types of construction equipment used by the Romans would take too much time, so we will focus only on some of the most important of them, including here, first of all, lifting and hydraulic machines and mechanisms. Vitruvius, along with a description of military vehicles, mentions various types of lifting equipment, including pulleys, chain hoists, capstans, pile driving machines, etc. Images of construction machines and mechanisms described by Heron of Alexandria (around the 1st century AD) have survived to this day. ) in his Mechanics. All these machines and mechanisms were powered by the power of the arms, legs, and later - water and remained the main building technology until the onset of the era of steam. The principle of their operation today remains the same as 2000 years ago. The Romans had three types of hydraulic machines, at least two of which were borrowed from the Greeks. This is a lifting wheel and an Archimedes screw - a pressure pump. Of all these types of machines, the Archimedes screw is the most widely used. It consisted of a wooden core - a screw, upholstered in a spiral with copper strips, and a wooden cylinder. The length of the entire machine could reach 11-12 m, and the angle of inclination to the horizon was 22-45 °. The screw was driven by a special handle mounted on the upper end of the machine. By placing these screws one above the other, it was possible to pump water from great depths with them. Lifting equipment became widespread in Roman construction practice. With their help, a large number of monumental buildings and structures were erected, among them the pride of Rome - the Colosseum, the concrete Pantheon, Trajan's column, the marble blocks of which weighed 50 tons each. During the construction of the Claudius aqueduct, the length of which was more than 14 km, it was necessary to lift 560 thousand tons of hewn stone. Among the many types of hoisting mechanisms, the trispastos is a very original one - a step crane that works on the principle of a squirrel wheel. It is believed that during the construction of the Pantheon a crane with a tread wheel and a tread pile driver were used. It is possible that for lifting stones of very large sizes and masses, for example, drums of columns or architraves, they used the more “old” tested Egyptian method, which Pliny the Elder mentions. According to him, the stones were lifted along an inclined plane formed by bags filled with dry sand, while the stones themselves were located slightly higher than their future place of support. Then the sand was slowly poured out of the bags until the blocks of stone took their design position. However, there is no doubt that cranes were still more often used as more productive lifting equipment. To lift stones with cranes, in one case, horseshoe-shaped grooves were hewn out on two opposite planes of the stone, through which rope ropes were pushed and hooked to the crane hook. In the other, through holes were made in the stones, through which it was possible to pass a lifting rope, or, by making special recesses on them, it was possible to grab them with a kind of “pincers”. The transportation of stones from the quarries to the construction site was one of the most labor-intensive operations.

Overland delivery of goods was carried out with the help of drags, carts and draft animals. Their loading and unloading took place both with the help of levers, wedges and hooks, and with the help of lifting mechanisms. Huge blocks of marble, most of which were brought to Rome from Egypt, were transported by sea on specially constructed barges. To do this, the barges were brought to the place of loading half-flooded, with the help of stones laid for this purpose. After the marble blocks were loaded onto the barge, these temporarily laid stones were removed, the barge was raised and the cargo was transported to its destination.

2.3 Water pipes of ancient Rome.
In the history of the development of water supply systems, ancient Roman water pipes occupy a special place. Their remains that have survived to this day testify not only to the greatness and power of Ancient Rome, but also to the highest level of engineering development for the ancient world. The largest city ancient times (according to modern estimates, during the period of the empire, its population ranged from 600 thousand to 2 million people), moreover, located on the hills, could not help but have a developed water supply system. It had 11 water pipes. The first of them - Appiev, named after the censor Appius Claudius, who led this project, was built in 312 BC. e. and had a length of over 16 kilometers. The second water pipeline, built 40 years later, had a length of 70 kilometers! The third, Martiev, water supply was of the same size. The total length of Roman aqueducts was 436 km, of which 55 km were bridge structures. They supplied to the city, famous for its fountains and baths (terms), from 700 thousand to 1 million cubic meters. m of water daily (according to some estimates - up to 1.5 million cubic meters). Such a large water consumption may seem excessively high, but it must be borne in mind that the ancient Romans did not know shutoff valves, and the water in the system flowed continuously, providing flushing of sewage. Such water consumption could not be provided by any water-lifting structures known at that time, therefore water in the ancient Roman aqueducts came by gravity from natural sources that had to be found in the mountains (to provide a height difference sufficient to supply water to a city located on the hills), sometimes tens of kilometers from the city. Pipe production technologies at that time were in their infancy: pottery and lead pipes were known, in some cases drilled stone blocks were used; Naturally, it was impossible to provide such a large demand for pipes with their help. Therefore, channels and flumes were built to deliver water, and here the ancient Roman architects showed real miracles, demonstrating deep knowledge of mechanics and hydraulics and creating hydraulic structures that amaze with their colossal size and high accuracy of calculations. Modern studies of the effectiveness of ancient Roman water pipes, including, in particular, computer modeling, have shown that systems created 1.5 - 2 thousand years ago are fully consistent with current standards.
We will note more than once the elegance of engineering solutions and the high accuracy of their implementation in the construction of Roman aqueducts. Recall that their creators used Roman numbering, which arose in the 5th century BC. BC e. and extremely inconvenient for calculations. All calculations were carried out using counting boards and pebbles (hence "calculation" - from the Latin calculi - pebbles).
Water pipelines were built not only in Rome, but also in other cities of the Roman Empire. Their remains can be found in Italy, Spain, France, Turkey. Some of them allow you to get a fairly complete picture of the structure and characteristics of ancient Roman water pipes.

Aqueducts.

Channels.

The Roman civilization left behind a huge contribution to history, despite the fact that in most cases it was in the shadow of its neighbors from Greece. The Romans borrowed many sciences, and counting using Roman numerals was generally unpleasant. However, there are at least 10 technologies created in Rome that are still in use today.

In ancient times, it was believed that in order to learn the basics of geometry or philosophy, it is preferable to turn to the Greek. If it is necessary to build a bridge, a sewer or powerful weapon, then it is better to turn to the Roman. Indeed, unsurpassed technological achievements distinguish this civilization from other representatives of its time. The result of Roman inventions was the fact that many technologies are used to this day throughout the planet. We will talk about ten of the most famous.

10. Dome
What is now taken for granted: arches, atriums, glass walls and ceilings, was unthinkable in ancient world: before the Romans managed to create the technology to improve buildings, the best architects of that time suffered for a long time with stone roofs. All architectural works created before the heyday of Roman civilization, such as the pyramids, look much more impressive from the outside than they were inside - they were dark rooms with limited space. It was the Romans who were the first in history to create vast open interior spaces thanks to the realization that the arch could be rotated in three dimensions. And to create a powerful reliable force to hold such structures, it was necessary to have a special substance, which became concrete - the achievement of the Romans. In this rating, we will return to this achievement of civilization

9. Armament
Like most of the technology of the time, siege weapons were first created by the Greeks but were perfected by the Romans. Thanks to captured samples of Greek weapons, the world saw ballista - crossbows giant size, light and precise. The use of ballistas was widely directed against infantry, while on their basis "siege engines" were created - powerful and maneuverable mini-catapults, which, although they were not as aimed as ballistas, dealt huge damage, which made it possible to successfully use them for siege

8. Concrete
Liquid stone, aka concrete, is one of the greatest achievements of the Romans. Nowadays, concrete is widely used in construction of various sizes. Antique concrete consisted of a mixture of volcanic ash, pozzolan, crushed stone, lime and sand. Concrete allowed for pouring of any shape, and was unusually strong. Initially, Roman architects used it to cast the bases of altars, but in later times various experiments were carried out with this material, which resulted in the appearance of such wonders as the Pantheon - the world's largest unreinforced concrete structure and is still 2000 years old.

7. Roads
Talking about the achievements of Roman civilization, one cannot keep silent about such an invention as roads, which were created so well that many of them are still suitable for use. Of course, it would be incorrect to compare Roman roads with modern asphalt highways, but they were really durable, and were created for centuries in several stages. At the beginning, a huge pit was dug about a meter deep, then wide stone blocks were installed at the bottom of the trench, after which the remaining space was filled with a thick layer of gravel. The uppermost layer was laid with special plates with bulges, on which water could flow. As you know, the engineers of the empire insisted on the creation of exclusively straight roads, which required huge resources to clear the area through which these roads passed. However, by 200 BC, the Roman Empire had 85,000 kilometers of roads to its credit.

6. Sewerage
The monumental collectors of the Romans became one of the most iconic creations, despite the fact that they were originally built for a completely different purpose. Initially, the "Cloaca Maxima" ("The largest sewer" in the literal translation), was created to drain part of the water from local swamps. Beginning in 600 BC and over the following hundreds of years, many waterways were added. On the this moment it is difficult to determine exactly at what point the cloaca became a full-fledged sewer, however, as cities grew, sewers began to penetrate deeper and deeper into them, eventually completely covering them. The main achievement of the sewer was the fact of inconspicuousness and ridding society of most infectious diseases, and Pliny the Elder stated that the Roman sewer is a much more complex architectural structure than the Egyptian pyramids.

5. Heated floor
Creation optimum temperature- the most difficult engineering task, which requires a powerful scientific potential even in our time, what to say about ancient times. However, the Romans coped with this task. They first applied an idea that is still used in the construction of underfloor heating - it was a structure of clay hollow columns that were built under the base of the floor, and solved several problems at once: the problem of fire and the problem of smoke. Fire at that time was the main source of heat, but the buildings had the properties of burning, and the smoke released during this carried a huge danger of suffocation. In the Roman heating system, the floor was raised, which allowed the hot air from the furnace never to come into contact with the room: it passed through the hollow tiles, and as it left the building was absorbed by the clay tiles, which made it possible to achieve the desired effect.

4. Aqueduct
Like roads, aqueducts of phenomenal length have become calling card and a real engineering marvel in the life of the Romans. One of the limitations of the growth of ancient cities was the inability to get from any point to drinking water and this issue has been resolved. After all, although Rome was located on the Tiber River, it was excessively polluted by another invention of architecture: sewage. The Roman aqueducts were a complex system that stretched over 400 kilometers and supplied clean drinking water to the city.

3. Hydropower
The Romans were able to combine Greek technology and their own engineering skills, which made it possible to create the world's first water-powered mills, turbines and sawmills. Also, the Romans created the world's first inverted wheel, which later became widespread throughout the world. It is noteworthy that despite the abundance of engineering ideas, affordable and cheap manual labor continued to be used in most of the empire.

2. Arch of segments
Although such an invention as an arch does not belong to the hands of the Romans, they found the possibility of improving it. Roman engineers managed to comprehend that in order to give strength to the structure, the arch should not consist of one segment, when it can be broken into many small parts. This allowed the creation of much more powerful and reliable bridges.

1. Pontoon bridges
A huge number of Roman roads implied the possibility of rapid movement of armies, and the pontoon bridge created in 55 BC by Julius Caesar, more than 400 meters long, allowed the Romans to cross the Rhine with lightning speed, in which the ancient tribes of the Germans saw reliable protection from invasion. The bridge over the Rhine turned out to be an extremely clever creation, because building a bridge across the river without disturbing the flow is a very difficult task, especially in a military situation. Engineers worked quickly and efficiently: the piles were assembled together within ten days, after which the bridge was assembled

The ancient culture of Rome, which existed in the period from the 8th century. BC. and until the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire in 476 AD, gave the world its own vision of a system of ideals and values. For this civilization, love for the Motherland, dignity and honor, reverence for the gods and faith in one's own uniqueness were paramount. This article presents main aspects, capable of describing such a unique phenomenon as the culture of Ancient Rome, briefly.

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Ancient Roman culture

According to chronological data, the history of the culture of Ancient Rome can be divided into three main periods:

• royal (8th–6th centuries BC);
• republican (6th-1st centuries BC);
• imperial (1st century BC - 5th century AD).

The royal period of ancient Rome is considered the most primitive in terms of Roman culture. However, at that time the Romans already had own alphabet. At the end of the 6th century, the first ancient schools began to appear, in which children studied Latin and Greek, writing and arithmetic.

Attention! For that short period ancient history, lasting from 753 to 509. BC, seven kings managed to ascend the Roman throne: Romulus, Numa Pompilius, Tull Hostilius, Ankh Marcius, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, Servius Tullius, Lucius Tarquinius the Proud.

The Republican period is characterized by the penetration of ancient Greek culture into the life of Ancient Rome. At this time they begin to develop philosophy and law.

The most prominent Roman philosopher of that time was Lucretius (98-55), who in his work "On the Nature of Things" urged people to stop being afraid of superstition and God's punishment.

He gave a completely logical explanation for the appearance of man and the universe. An innovation in the system of Roman law was the introduction of the concept of " entity”, which strengthens the position of private owners.

During the imperial period of development ancient culture there is a rejection of all Greek. Roman uniqueness develops. This is clearly seen in the culture and architecture of that time: the Colosseum and the Pantheon. For the first time, attempts are being made to study the activity of the brain. The experiments were carried out by the famous doctor Galen in ancient times. Are being created medical training schools. Religion has also changed. The Roman emperor was now recognized as a deity, who ascended to heaven after death.

Ancient Roman heritage

Many achievements of Ancient Rome in the field of civilization and culture, created in the ancient period, are still popular all over the world:

• Water pipes. Aqueducts were used back in Babylon, but in ancient Rome they began to be used not only for irrigation, but also for domestic needs. Water pipelines were also carried out to industrialists: places where resources were extracted and handicraft quarters. Surviving aqueducts built in antiquity on the territory of modern Europe can be found in Germany, France and Italy.
• Sewerage. It became a necessary element of large Roman cities. Drainage systems were used both to drain water during rain, and sewage of various kinds. Antique cesspools are still used today, however, only to remove water after a downpour.
• Citizenship. The main legacy of ancient Rome. It was the Romans who established the procedures for obtaining citizenship. All free people were considered legal residents of the Empire, regardless of where they were born and in what territory of the state they live.
• Republic. The republican form of government, created in Rome in the ancient period, put the beginning of the creation of a modern type of power. It was the Romans who began to share the reins of government, since, in their opinion, its concentration in the hands of one ruler could be fatal for all citizens. The Romans managed to maintain harmony between the strata of society for a long period of time thanks to delegation. However, ironically, it was the republican form of government that buried the Roman state.
• Cultural monuments of Ancient Rome. This rich heritage includes Roman buildings, sculptures, literary works, philosophical works.

Art

The artistic culture of ancient Rome was very similar to the Greek of the same period. But this also has its advantages. Thanks to the Romans managed to save many works of ancient painting that were copied from Greek artists.

Sculptures from the Romans acquired emotions. Their faces reflected the state of mind, thanks to which the sculpture came to life. It is in ancient Rome that such literary direction like a novel.

The unified Greco-Roman culture of the ancient period gave rise to many writers, playwrights and poets. A new direction in literature was born - the novel. Among the famous satirists of that time, it is worth noting Plautus and Terence.

Their comedies have been preserved to this day. Livius Andronicus became the first tragedian in Rome and translated Homer's Odyssey into Latin language. Among the poets, it is worth noting Lucilius, who wrote poems on everyday topics. Most often in his works, he ridiculed the obsession with wealth.

During the time of Cicero in Ancient Rome philosophy gains popularity. There are such trends as Roman Stoicism, the main idea of ​​which was the achievement of a moral and spiritual ideal by a person, and Roman Neoplatonism, which preached the ascent of the human soul to unity with a certain ecstasy.

In the field of astronomy, the ancient scientist Ptolemy is famous, who created the geocentric system of the world. He also wrote a number of works on optics, mathematics and geography.

Architecture of Ancient Rome

The ancient Roman era left majestic monuments of ancient architecture that can be seen today.

Coliseum. A huge amphitheater, the construction of which began in 72 AD. and ended only after 8 years. Its second name, the Flavian amphitheater, is associated with the ruling dynasty, whose representatives were the initiators of the construction. The total capacity of the Roman Colosseum was more than 50 thousand people.

Note! Most often, prisoners of war participated in gladiator fights. Their lives depended on how colorfully they were able to demonstrate their capabilities and to what extent they won over the public. If a gladiator made a strong impression, the spectators of Rome let him live and gave him a thumbs up. If the audience wanted death, then the thumb calmly fell down.

Triumphal Arch of Titus. The initiator of the construction of the monument was the Roman emperor Domitian, shortly after the death of his predecessor Titus. This ancient monument was built in 81 AD. in honor of the conquest of Jerusalem in 70 AD. The arch is known for its convex relief within the span. It depicts a procession of Roman soldiers with trophies captured in Jerusalem.

Pantheon. A majestic structure built by Emperor Hadrian in 126 AD. The Pantheon is a temple dedicated to all the gods. Perfectly preserved to this day in its original form, this cultural monument of the ancient period is unique in its proportionality and visual lightness. From above, the Roman temple is decorated with a dome with a hole in the center for sunlight to enter.

cultural traditions

The brightest and most peculiar traditions of the Roman culture of the ancient period are presented in marriage ceremony.

On the eve of the wedding, the girl, as if saying goodbye to childhood, had to donate her toys and clothes. The head was tied with a red shawl, the bride was dressed in a white tunic, which was tied with a belt of sheep's wool.

The wedding dress in ancient Rome was red, which was worn over a tunic. A bright yellow veil was thrown over the head, which matched the color of the shoes.

herself the ceremony was accompanied pig sacrifice. From its insides it was determined whether happy marriage. And if so, then the performer of the divination ceremony gave his permission.

Already during the ancient period, marriage contracts were drawn up, in which the dowry of the bride and the procedure for dividing property in the event of a divorce were prescribed. The contract was read aloud in front of ten witnesses, after which these witnesses put their signatures.

Specificity

Despite the fact that Ancient Rome imitated Greece in many ways, it had characteristic distinctive features in culture. If the Greeks occupied territories by distributing their goods, then Rome led military actions, completely depriving the conquered territory of independence.

Once every five years, a population survey was conducted - qualification. The activity of the population was valued as in war time, and in peacetime.

The toga was considered the national dress in Rome. That is why the Romans were called "togatus". The eternal companion of Ancient Rome was the army, which stood outside the state. Features of the culture of Ancient Rome allowed it to become the basis for the subsequent flourishing of Europe.

musical culture

The musical culture of the ancient antique period was no different from the artistic one in the sense that it also completely copied the Greek one.

Singers, musicians, dancers were invited from Greece. It was popular to perform the odes of Horace, the poems of Ovid, accompanied by the music of the cithara and tibia.

However, later in ancient Rome, musical performances lost their original appearance and acquired an exceptionally spectacular character. The musicians' performances were accompanied by theatrical performances. Even gladiatorial fights were accompanied by the sounds of trumpets and horns.

During the ancient period, they were very popular music teachers. A letter from the poet Martial to his friend has survived to this day, in which he says that if he becomes a music teacher, then his career is guaranteed.

Pantomime became a new trend in art. It was performed by a dancer-soloist to the sounds of a choir and a large number of musical instruments.

The last emperor of Rome, Domitian, at the end of the 1st century. AD arranged a "Capitol competition" between soloists, poets and musicians. The winners were crowned with laurel wreaths.

The contribution of ancient Rome to world culture

The contribution of Ancient Rome to the development of modern European civilization is undeniable. The Romans in antiquity created Latin alphabet, on which all medieval Europe wrote. Created in Rome system civil law , civic values ​​are defined: patriotism, belief in one's own identity and greatness. In the same place, Christianity historically developed, which greatly influenced the subsequent stages of the development of mankind. The Romans introduced concrete. They taught the world how to build bridges and aqueducts.

Sculpture and art as part of the culture of Ancient Rome

Culture and History of Ancient Rome briefly

Conclusion

The greatest men in history praised ancient Rome and its culture in their quotes. So, Napoleon said: "The history of Rome is the history of the whole world." Obviously, if the Roman Empire had been able to withstand the onslaught of the "barbarian" tribes in 476, then the Renaissance would have appeared to the world much earlier. The contribution of Ancient Rome to world culture is so great that it remains to be studied for a long time.

Ancient Rome is one of the first and at the same time a prime example globalization in human history. The legacy of the Roman state is truly colossal. It is so great and tangible in our Western world that we can all consider ourselves a little bit Roman. And now we will talk about some of the most significant things that, even if they were not invented in Rome, then they entered the "fashion" precisely thanks to him.

1. Latin alphabet


Where is Latin used?

The most obvious piece of Roman heritage. Today, languages ​​based on the Latin alphabet are spoken and written by half the world. The Latin alphabet itself, according to the most popular (and plausible) theory of scientists, appeared as a result of adapting the Etruscan alphabet and adding Greek elements to it.

2. Concrete


Only the Romans appreciated this material at its true worth.

Concrete was invented by humans long before the Romans. Nevertheless, it was the Romans who fully appreciated all the advantages of this material. In the central and western part of the empire, literally everything was built from concrete, from workshops and residential buildings to temples, aqueducts, state and cultural buildings.
Moreover, the Romans made special concrete, incredibly strong and durable! Scientists have unraveled its secret quite recently. All the salt was that the Romans used to strengthen the material sea ​​water and volcanic soot.

3. Paved roads and stone bridges


The Romans were the first to widely build stone bridges.

As with concrete, people built roads and bridges all over the world even before the Romans. However, in the "western" part of our planet, it was they who decided that it would be nice to make roads durable and bridges more durable. As a result of the construction of these infrastructure facilities, stone and concrete began to be actively used. The need for good roads was obvious, during the "pax romana" (the era of Roman prosperity), the Roman Empire occupied almost the entire known world and was largest state on our planet. Roman paved roads have survived to this day.

4. Road web


Roman roads have survived to this day.

Roman roads are of course no longer in use today where they have survived. However, the Romans left us another gift. The transport web of Europe and Asia Minor is still defined by the places where Roman roads pass. Many modern highways and highways today coincide with ancient Roman ones.

5. Plumbing


The Romans also popularized aqueducts.

It will be difficult to patent the authorship of the plumbing for the Romans. They tried to build aqueducts in ancient Babylon. However, it was the Romans who began to use aqueducts wherever they could. Unlike all predecessor civilizations, the Romans used aqueducts not only for irrigation, but also to supply cities with water, as well as industrial facilities: handicraft quarters and resource extraction sites. The city of Rome alone was supplied from 11 aqueducts! Today, more or less preserved aqueducts can be found throughout Europe: in Italy, France, Germany and elsewhere.

6. Sewerage


Most big cities and the largest cesspools for them were among the Romans.

It was the Romans who made sewerage not just “fashionable”, but vital for major cities. Roman cesspools were used both to drain sewage and to drain storm water. At first, these were rather trivial cesspools and ditches, but later the Romans began to pave them with stone and even make underground tunnels! The first Roman sewer was the "Cloaca Maxima", which is located in Rome itself. By the way, it has survived to this day. They even use it! True, today it is exclusively for the removal of rainwater.

7. Regular, professional army


The militia is good, but the army is even better.

Before the Romans, there were no regular armies as such. In ancient Greece, in Egypt and in the East, armies, as a rule, gathered in the form of a militia, needed at an hour, for protection or, on the contrary, a military campaign against neighbors. The number of "professional" warriors in all the early states was negligible and most often ended in the personal protection of the ruler, and the temple guard.

The history of Rome is the history of warriors, external and internal. And throughout the history of this state, its army has also developed, which has come a long way from the police and militia described above, to a regular and, moreover, a professional army. It was the Romans who changed the concept of a warrior to a soldier, realizing that a large state constantly needs those who will defend its interests with weapons in their hands.

It is noteworthy that the final transition to the regular army was due to economic crisis in the state. In the country, the rate of unemployment is growing at a terrible pace due to the ruin of peasant farms. The solution was found by Gaius Marius, who began to take all the free inhabitants of the country (not only citizens), military service promising salaries and lands upon retirement

8. Patronage


The Romans made it fashionable to patronize the arts and sciences.

This very phenomenon in society was named after Gaius Cylnius Maecenas, best friend Roman ruler Octavian Augustus. Speaking modern language, one could call Maecenas the first Minister of Culture in the history of mankind. In fact, Gaius Zilny did not hold any official position, but actively sponsored cultural figures so that they would glorify state values ​​and Octavian Augustus himself.

9. Republic


The Republic is a common cause.

When modern people talk about democracy, republic and freedom, you might think that all these three words are synonyms. In fact, all this is not so at all. The democracy of Athens had nothing to do with the Republic of Rome, the latter being the grandfather of all republican forms of government.

It was the Romans who first appreciated the benefits of the division of power, realizing that the concentration of such in the hands of one person can be dangerous for the whole society. Ironically, it is precisely the concentration of power in one hand that already in the imperial period will become one of the gravediggers of the ancient state.

Nevertheless, for a long time the Romans really managed to successfully share power in society, to reach a social consensus among all the free inhabitants of the country. Let at times for this the poorest members of society had to blackmail the richest with mass migration to other lands, or even take up arms.

10. Citizenship


Anyone who lives and is free can be a citizen.

Perhaps the most important legacy of Rome, which today, one way or another, people use. The concept of "citizen" existed in many ancient states. However, only the Romans eventually came to the conclusion that all free people should be citizens of the empire, regardless of where they were born and in which part of the state they live.

11. Christianity


Sim win.

For a long time in the Roman Empire, Christians were considered a dangerous Jewish sect. However, everything changed under Constantine the Great, who, after the battle for Rome, equalized all religions in rights. He will transfer the same cross from Jerusalem to the new capital of the state - Constantinople. Already Theodosius I the Great will make Christianity the state religion. Yes, thanks to Rome Christian faith will begin to spread around the world.

12. Social mobility


The Roman Empire in terms of social mobility almost surpassed the modern United States.

Finally, I want to talk about one more "gift". Like all ancient states, Rome was a slaveholding state. It was in ancient Rome that the concept of “classical slavery” was formed, that terrible phenomenon that today seems to be absolute savagery. But with all this, terrible Rome was strikingly different from any other state in the matter of social mobility.

Before Rome, in some ancient Greece, Egypt, Babylon, people died the way they were born. For many centuries after Rome, people died the way they were born. And only in Rome, for the first time, people began to actively use social mobility. Here slaves became free, freedmen ascended to the aristocracy, and ordinary soldiers made their way to the emperor.

post scriptum


Mausoleum of a simple baker.

The hero himself.

Today, in modern Rome, in the center of the city, not far from the Colosseum and the ruins of the forum, you can find a small mausoleum. The owner of this mausoleum was not an emperor, not a senator, and not even a respectable citizen. Its owner is a simple baker - Mark Virgil Eurysaces. He was born a slave in a family of Greek migrants, was able to gain freedom, concluded an agreement with the capital of the country for the supply of bread and became so rich that in the end he could afford this very monument for himself and his wife.