Ancient Roman Arch Essay

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Discuss the development of both concrete and the arch. Include the importance of each in the life of Rome and the results of their use
Introduction
Roman Architecture before being influenced by its conquered territories was far from grandeur. The architecture and art were a legacy of their predecessors and conquered such as the Greeks, Egyptians, Babylonians, and Etruscans. Before the booming of Roman Arches, Arch was already used in the mentioned civilizations but it was the Romans who developed the idea and made it possible to use it to support much larger buildings.
Concrete and Arch
Arch is a curved structure usually supported by columns at each end. Arches were initially made of stones, bricks, and clay until the Roman strengthened the construction …show more content…

The mortar can also be used to build structure underwater, by packing it inside wooden forms then the sea water will act as catalyst to trigger the chemical reaction by hydrating the lime and ash that will fuse and cement everything together with an exceptionally strong bond.
The Romans also changed the use of arch through their innovations. The ancient arches were a set of corbeled stones or bricks which didn’t have power to support heavy structures above the arch. The Romans then invented true arch by using wooden cast to support the shape while they lay the wedge-shaped stones or bricks (called voussoirs) at specific angle with a key stone in the middle, the stones/voussirs on the left and right side then will push their weight into the key stone creating a solid form which then strengthened by their use of concrete as the cohesive bonds between the stones. This innovation allowed huge buildings, vault, and domes to be built thus the breathtaking architecture and interior spaces were

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