Roman Inventions: Pont du Gard and Concrete

Study Notes

The Roman civilization lasted from 509 BCE to 476 CE and left a legacy of technological innovation.
Three of the most important Roman advances still in use today are aqueducts, roads, and concrete buildings.

Aqueducts were pipelines that brought fresh water from mountains to areas without water, sustaining Roman life.
Rome used 11 aqueducts, which carried hundreds of gallons of water daily for drinking, bathing, and other purposes.
The aqueduct system used gravity, underground tunnels, and meticulously engineered pipelines to transport water.
The Roman people accessed water through cisterns, fountains, or in-house plumbing, with a separate sewage system to prevent contamination.
Examples of Roman aqueducts include the Anio Novus aqueduct and the Pont du Gard, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Romans invented hydraulic concrete as an inexpensive building material in the 2nd century BCE.
The ingredients for Roman concrete included lime, water, and volcanic ash, with rock shards added to the mortar mixture.
Concrete was cheap, could be poured into one solid piece, and shaped into any form, making it easy to transport and virtually unbreakable.
Roman concrete was known for its amazing durability and was used in monumental architecture.

Roman concrete allowed architects to create larger and more intricate designs than with stone slabs.
Examples of Roman monumental architecture include the Pantheon, the Domus Aurea (Golden House), and the Colosseum.

Roman civil engineers created roads by layering gravel, rocks, and stones, topped with paving stones.
The Romans constructed 50,000 miles of road, connecting remote corners of the Roman Empire to trade routes.
The highway system facilitated trade, information, and people's travel across Europe and the Mediterranean, and was useful for Rome's military expansion.

The Roman army developed medical tools like surgical clamps and tourniquets to stem blood loss.
Roman medics implemented sanitation practices to prevent epidemic diseases and infections.
Roman army doctors had a range of medical instruments and developed techniques to safely remove weapons from soldiers' bodies and amputate limbs.

Julius Caesar designed the Julian Calendar in 45 BCE, which was adopted by the Roman Empire a year later.
The Julian Calendar was an attempt to align with the more precise solar calendar, but still missed multiple days.
The Julian Calendar was widely used until 1582, when it was replaced by the Gregorian Calendar, which introduced Leap Days every four years.