ARC523 Advanced Building Systems

LECTURE: Roman Construction

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• Roman construction
• MATERIAL: BRICK
• WALL TYPES
• THE ARCH
• THE PANTHEON
• ROMAN VAULTING
• ROMAN to ROMANESQUE VAULTING
• GOTHIC VAULTING
• FRENCH GOTHIC CATHEDRAL COMPARTIVE SECTIONS.
• DUOMO, Relative dimensions

Concrete:

Walls:

• Earth suitable for terra cotta, brick
• Quarries near Rome for: tufa, peperino, volcanic origin, travertine, limestone, lava
• good sand and gravel
• Initially made with stone or brick rubble

Later, mortar made with pozzolana (found near Rome, Naples)

• much better than sand,
• mix with water and lime, very strong, can be set under water
• a manufactured product, shipped throughout the empire.

Frequently laid alternating courses of mortar and rubble (not mixed as today) faced with stone or brickwork.
For good buildings, faced with plaster, alabaster or marble Marble quarried all over the empire.
Special wharves on the Tiber, semi-finished there

Later, smaller stone used for convenience

laid in diagonal pattern

Honzontal and vertical bonding courses added (Hadrian)

Greeks,- 3rd Century seemed to employ tan9~lation

Started by Etruscuns?

Romans used it (Vitruvius claimed 6O' span basilica)

Much later English cathedrals have naves only 40' span,

Romans could span 80' - 90'

• Saves labor (over stone cutting)
• Can be moved into building fabric without special equipment

• Inside -  2 tiers up on inside
• Outside - 3rd tier (greater downward load)

Steps (of concrete) up 2/3rd of dome on outside

All Roman domes:

• Outside, saucer shaped
• Inside, hemispherical shaped

Lighter aggregate near top

Oculus -

• seen constructionally,
• 27' wide, reduces weight
• at hardest part to build

Coffering - used to lighten and concentrate load

Walls - 20' thick

Concealed buttress and niches

Roofs, arches, vaults, dome plasticity, shapeable

Vaults require centering

Use of brick ribs reduces amount of centering needed

Alternating brick rib with concrete infill

Visit the Pantheon web site.

• Basilica of Constantine: 76' span, 8' thick at the top

Outward forces contained by:

• other vaults (cross vaults, counter vaults)
• buttresses

Types of buttresses:

• hemicycle or niche (esp. for retaining)
• spur, even flying buttresses
• pinnacle, to load buttress (Gothic)

(

Rheims Amien 1290 -1233/36

King's College Oxford 1446-1515 15th century