The Legacy of Greco- Roman Civilization

Rome became a legacy  Art  Architecture  Language  Literature  Engineering  Law

Greek influence  By the 2 nd century,  Rome conquered Greece and admired the Greek culture.  Educated Romans learned the Greek language.  The two cultures mixed into what became known as Greco-Roman culture, also known as classical civilization.

Roman Art  Learned the art of sculpture from the Greeks –Greeks were known for beauty and idealization of their sculpture –Romans created realistic portraits in stone  Roman art was practical  Intended for public education

Bas-Relief  Bas-Relief artwork developed during the reign of Augustus.  Artwork that projects images from a flat background. These images tell stories and represent crowds of people, soldiers in battle, and landscapes.

Bas-Relief Roman Art

Mosaics  Pictures or designs made by small pieces of stone, glass, or tile onto a surface.  Most Roman villas, the country houses of the wealthy, had at least one colored mosaic.  Having mosaics demonstrated wealth and importance, especially mosaics built into the floors.

Roman Mosaic Art

Used scenes of everyday life

Paintings  Romans also excelled in paintings.  Most wealthy Romans had bright, large murals, called frescoes, painted directly on their walls.  The best examples are those found in the Roman city, Pompeii, and date back to the 2 nd century.  Mount Vesuvius erupted, covering Pompeii with a thick layer of ash and killed 2,000 people.  This ash preserved the artwork.  L0r-uY4 L0r-uY4 L0r-uY4

Mount Vesuvius

Mount Vesuvius Eruption

 Mount Vesuvius is most known for its eruption in 79 AD, which led to the destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum.  The cities were never rebuilt  The towns were forgotten and rediscovered in the 18 th century.

1944  It has erupted at least 50 times since then, 1944 being the last.  This is a picture of an American B-25 during WWII.  The crew member is sweeping the ashes off its wings.

Ruins of Pompeii

Notice Vesuvius in the background

 Skeleton called the Ring Lady found in Herculaneum

Back to the artwork!  Frescoes and murals  Roman Bath mural

Fresco in Pompeii

Philosophy  Romans borrowed Stoicism from the Greeks. –Stoicism came from the Greek teacher, Zeno.  Stoicism encouraged virtue, duty, moderation, and endurance.  Marcus Aurelius was a noted stoic.

Literature  Writers used Roman themes and ideas while following Greek forms and models.  The poet, Virgil, spent 10 years writing the most famous work of Latin literature, Aeneid, the epic of legendary Aeneas.  It was modeled after the Greek epics of Homer.

Ovid Ovid  The poet Ovid wrote light, witty poetry for enjoyment.  In the Amores, Ovid relates that he can only compose when he is in love.

Livy  Completed a volume history of Rome from its origins to 9 B.C.  He used legends and myth more than a true history.

Tacitus  Ancient Roman historian  Notable because he presented the facts accurately.  Showed concern for Rome’s lack of morality.  In his Annals and Histories, he wrote about the good and bad of Imperial Rome.

Tacitus

Roman Achievements  Latin, the Language of Rome  Architecture, Engineering, and Technology  Roman System of Law

Language  Latin remained the language of learning in the West long after the fall of Rome.  It was the official language of the Roman Catholic Church into the 20 th century.  Latin became the foundation for French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and Romanian.  These languages are called the Romance languages because of their ‘Roman’ heritage.  More than half of the words in the English language are Latin based.

For example  Baptism - English  Bapteme – French  Bautismo – Spanish  Batismo – Portuguese  Battesimo – Italian  Botez – Romanian

 Debt slip written in Latin used during the Greco-Roman times

Roman Architecture  Arches, domes, and concrete were combined to build spectacular structures like the Roman Colosseum.  Arches also supported bridges and aqueducts.  Many large public buildings in the US include Roman architectural features, like arches and columns.

Aqueducts  Designed by roman engineers to bring water into cities and towns.  When the water spanned across a river, the aqueduct was lifted high up on arches.

Technology  Besides the aqueducts, roads were also technological marvels.  The army built a vast network of roads constructed of stone, concrete, and sand that connected Rome to all parts of the empire.  Many lasted into the Middle Ages.  Some roads are still used.

Law  Rome’s most lasting and widespread contribution.  Believed that the law should be fair and apply equally to all people, rich and poor.

Principles of Roman law  All persons had the right to equal treatment under the law.  A person was considered innocent until proven guilty.  The burden of proof rested with the accuser rather than the accused.  A person should be punished only for actions, not thoughts.  Any law that seemed unreasonable could be set aside.

 These principles formed the basis of legal systems in many European countries and in the United States.

Immortal  Some people say that Rome is immortal because Rome lived forever through its influence in architecture, art, law, literature, language, and philosophy.  Almost everywhere we look we can find something that can be traced back to the ancient Roman empire.