Have you ever used a calendar or walked on a paved road? Have you ever been to a mall? Do you have running water in your house? If so, you can thank the people who lived in ancient Rome! Ancient Romans invented these things and many more.
Where was ancient Rome? What was the Roman Empire? What was it like to live there? And, how did ancient Rome influence the world we live in today?
In this book, you’ll explore ancient Rome, an incredible city and empire that existed from 753 BCE to 476 CE. This book will also answer many of your questions and share some cool facts.
You’ll get to learn about villas, aqueducts, emperors, chariot races, gladiators, bathhouses, mosaics, and the Colosseum. You’ll also learn about some interesting people, such as Hadrian, Trajan, and Julius Caesar. One of them had a wall. One of them had a mall. And one of them had a great fall! Along the way, you’ll get to do plenty of fun projects, play games, and hear some goofy jokes. Ready? Let’s explore!
Ancient Rome was a city in Italy. According to legend, Romulus and Remus founded it in 753 BCE. Romulus and Remus were brothers who were taken from their mother and left to die along the banks of the Tiber River. A she-wolf took care of them until a shepherd adopted them. When they got older, they decided to build a city near the place the wolf found them. They fought over who would rule the new city and Romulus killed Remus. Rome, which still exists, is named for Romulus.
The area, which had seven hills, was a good place for a city. The Tiber River provided water, food, and a way to travel. In time, the rulers of Rome took over neighboring lands. All of these lands together were called the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire grew to include Spain, Greece, Asia Minor, Britain, Turkey and North Africa. The Roman Empire also controlled the Mediterranean Sea.
Because the Roman Empire was so big, different parts had different kinds of weather. Some places were cold. Others were hot. There were also different kinds of landscapes. Some places had desert sand. Other places had mountains. Romans became good at adapting to different kinds of environments. This helped them grow and flourish. One of the other things that helped ancient Romans to thrive was the aqueduct.
Roman Empire: all the lands and people ruled by Rome.
aqueduct: a channel that carried water from streams in the hills and mountains and from the Tiber River to the city of ancient Rome.
channel: a canal through which a stream of water moves.
castellum: a water tank in ancient Rome.
Cloaca Maxima: a famous sewer in Rome—the first sewer.
A million people lived in ancient Rome. All of those people needed water. In order to get water to the city, Romans built aqueducts. Aqueducts were channels that carried water from streams and springs in the hills and from the Tiber River to the city. They were made out of stones and concrete and had gradual slopes to move the water down. Gravity makes water move downhill.
At first, these channels were underground. This was probably done to hide the aqueducts from enemies. When the Roman Empire got so big it didn’t have to worry about enemies as much, the aqueducts were built above ground, on top of concrete archways.
Ancient Romans discovered a way to make concrete waterproof. They added volcanic sand. this was important because it meant they could build things that lasted a long time and held up in all kinds of weather. An example of this is an aqueduct. Many ancient Roman aqueducts are still standing, even though they are no longer used.
Q: What do you call a bird in a fountain in ancient Rome?
A: An aqua duck!
Water moved through the aqueducts into the city. There, the water flowed into a water tank called a castellum. Next, water was sent into pipes that led to public bathhouses, fountains, and the homes of the wealthy. Poor people got their water from the fountains. Each day, the aqueducts carried over 200 million gallons of water into the city. There were valves to turn off the water, but the Romans didn’t use them unless there was a problem. This meant water ran 24 hours a day. You’d probably get in trouble if you left the water running all day long!
To help drain all the used and dirty water, Romans invented sewers. The first sewer was called the Cloaca Maxima. It was about 985 yards long. It was tall enough, in places, for a horse and cart to go through! This sewer is still used today, 2,500 years after its construction.
Along with aqueducts, roads played a very important role in ancient Rome’s success. In order to allow quick travel to the city, ancient Romans built the first paved roadways. All of these roads led from various cities straight into Rome.
And straight was right! Ancient Romans built roads that took the shortest possible route. Sometimes, this meant building a road right through a hill. There were no curves.
There is an expression that says, “All roads lead to Rome.” It means that no matter which direction you go or decision you make, you’ll end up in the center of things or at the same place. This saying comes from the fact that all the roads in the Roman Empire led to the city of Rome like spokes on a wheel.
Ancient Romans built their roads with great skill. First, they dug out a foundation. Then, they laid sand or gravel down. Finally, they carefully placed stone slabs or paving stones on top. Each roadway had a slightly raised center so that water would run into drainage ditches along the side. This kept the roads from getting muddy and slippery. The ancient Romans built their roads so well that many are still used today.
| then: the beautiful archways that supported aqueducts decorated the land. Sometimes, houses were even built nearby so people could enjoy them. | now: the beautiful archways are still part of modern Rome’s landscape. Tourists come from all over the world to see ancient Roman arches. |
How does an arch stay up? It’s because of the keystone. A keystone is a specially shaped stone at the top of the arch that is the “key” to an arch.
wax paper
soda can, either opened and empty or closed and full
1 stick of air-hardening clay, any color
knife (if you use a sharp knife, be sure to ask an adult for help)
1 Lay a piece of wax paper on your workspace.
2 Turn the soda can on its side. Use it as a guide to mold the stick of clay into an arch.
3 After your arch is formed, slide the can out from underneath it.
4 Lay the arch down on the wax paper. Use the knife to cut a “keystone” out of the top of the arch.
5 Next, cut the rest of the arch into six, equal pieces. When you’re done, you should have one keystone and six supporting pieces (three for each side of the arch).
6 Let the clay pieces harden. Make sure they aren’t touching as they dry.
7 Once the clay pieces are hard, see if you can put them together to build an arch. You can use the soda can to support your arch until you add the keystone. If you’d like, you can also ask a friend to help you hold the pieces.
How hard is it to put your keystone puzzle together? How important is the keystone? Let a friend or family member try to put the puzzle together.
You will be using pointed scissors for this project, so ask an adult to help.
shoebox (without the lid) ruler
pencil or pen
pointed scissors
1-liter plastic bottle
duct tape
shallow bowl
cup of water
1 Turn the shoebox over so the open part is facing down. At the end of one of the long sides of the box, make a mark 1½ inches from the bottom.
2 Use the ruler to make a straight line from this mark to the bottom corner of the opposite end of the box. You’re making a triangle. Cut along the line. Do the same thing on the other long side of the box.
3 Cut the extra piece of cardboard off the short end of the box. When you’re done, your box should slope.
4 Use the pointed tip of your scissors to poke a hole near the top of the plastic bottle. Cut the top off. Poke a hole near the bottom of the bottle and cut the bottom off. You should now have a cylinder.
5 Cut the plastic bottle in half, lengthwise. Put the two pieces of bottle together so that they form a long channel. Overlap them slightly and connect them with duct tape.
6 Fold several pieces of duct tape with the sticky sides out, and use them to attach the channel to the shoebox. It’s okay if the plastic channel hangs off the ends of the box.
7 Place your bowl at the low end of your aqueduct. Slowly pour the water into the high end. The water should run down the channel into the bowl. Think of some fun ways to use your aqueduct. Maybe you could use it to water a plant or even to pour milk into your cereal bowl!
Ancient Romans used simple tools to build their roads, homes, buildings, and aqueducts. One of these simple tools was a plumb bob. A plumb bob uses gravity to help a make a straight line. Plumb bobs worked so well that many carpenters and builders still use them today!
newspaper
plaster of Paris
water
small bowl
styrofoam egg carton
large paperclip
toothpick
1 yard of heavy string scissors
1 Spread the newspaper over your workstation. Next, mix a small amount of plaster of Paris according to the directions on the container.
2 Pour the plaster of Paris into one of the egg cups, filling it to the top.
3 Place the paper clip into the plaster of Paris so that the top third of the paper clip stays above the plaster surface. Slide the toothpick through the paperclip, then let the toothpick rest across the top of the egg cup to keep the paperclip in place. Let the plaster of Paris dry completely.
4 Next, remove the hard plaster from the egg cup. (You might have to peel the carton off.) This will be the weight for your plumb bob.
5 Tie one end of the string to the paperclip. Now your plumb bob is ready to use!
Have a friend hold the string about 3 inches from the wall. Allow the weight to swing freely. Wait until the weight stops swinging. Just let gravity do its work! When the weight is still, you will have a straight line from the top of the string to the bottom of the string. You can use that to guide you as you mark a straight line on the wall with a pencil.
Ancient Romans built their roads completely straight whenever possible. They did this because they wanted to travel quickly from one place to another. Start from any room in your home and pretend your bedroom is the capital city, Rome. You need to get there taking the shortest route. Walking only in straight lines, see how many steps it takes to get to your room. If you have to, you can change the direction you’re walking but no walking in a curve! How many steps does it take to go from the kitchen to your room? How about from the living room? How much faster do you think it would be if there were no walls in your house?