Romans and electricity

Romans and electricity

Electricity, it's a child of the 19th-century, right? The Romans might have been pretty clever but they never mastered putting a D cell in a torch...or did they? There does seem to be at least some evidence of wet-cell batteries being used on the peripheries of the Roman Empire. The famous Baghdad Battery is more closely related to the post-Persian Parthian Empire, but these two ancient super powers shared borders, Greek culture and technology. Okay, so what was the Baghdad battery? Several five-inch tall clay jars have been found around Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) containing hollow copper cylinders and iron rods that appear to function as anodes and cathodes when the jar is filled with acid. Voltages of up to 0.5-volts have been recorded from modern copies of these vessels using vinegar, and their performance could certainly be boosted if a stronger acid were to be used - the Romans and Parthians would have been quite capable of manufacturing sulphuric and hydrochloric acids which should be able to boost these wet-cells into the region of 4 or 5 volts. All right, so they had a battery...what was it used for? There's a couple of theories. During this period the Romans and the Egyptians were using bio-electric fish - such as the Torpedo Fish (the electric ray) - to numb severe pain; including gout, child birth and migraines. One could imagine an electric ray would be hard to find in the Mesopotamian deserts, so a 'clay ray' battery might have been a worthy alternative. Then there's the jewellers. Just as we dress up silver by electroplating it with gold, the ancients probably cottoned on pretty quickly to the same game. Importantly, both pain relief and fiddling the jewellery would have provided sufficient cash equity to experiment with battery technology if nothing else. But is that all? Well, maybe. These 'batteries' don't show up in Roman or Parthian rubbish dumps like an Eveready or Duracel would these days...but, maybe, just maybe, Thomas Edison wasn't the first guy to invent the light bulb...more on that later.

Find out if Calvus had a light bulb moment 

Caracalla took the official name of M. Aurelius Antoninus Pius as part of the Severan dynasty’s attempt to appear as the legitimate and worthy successors of the secondcentury Antonine emperors. Despite this, in his official portraiture, he abandoned the luxuriant hair and beard of his predecessors for a military style characterized by closely cropped curls and a stubble beard. An ancient source records that on his deathbed, his father Septimius Severus advised Caracalla to “enrich the soldiers and despise everyone else.” This finely carved head is a powerful rendering of the official portrait and was probably produced at an imperial
workshop, since the statue fragments are said to have been found in Rome. It is from a statue, the legs of which also survive and are displayed in the Study Collection on the Mezzanine Floor.

Today in 1963

10 Innovations That Built Ancient Rome

10 Innovations That Built Ancient Rome

Tuesday, November 20, 2012  Jean Noël Tribolo  No comments

10 Innovations That Built Ancient Rome (Roman aqueduct) 

1. Aqueducts

The Romans enjoyed many amenities for their day, including public toilets, underground sewage systems, fountains and ornate public baths. None of these aquatic innovations would have been possible without the Roman aqueduct. First developed around 312 B.C., these engineering marvels used gravity to transport water along stone, lead and concrete pipelines and into city centers. Aqueducts liberated Roman cities from a reliance on nearby water supplies and proved priceless in promoting public health and sanitation. While the Romans did not invent the aqueduct—primitive canals for irrigation and water transport existed earlier in Egypt, Assyria and Babylon—they used their mastery of civil engineering to perfect the process. Hundreds of aqueducts eventually sprang up throughout the empire, some of which transported water as far as 60 miles. Perhaps most impressive of all, Roman aqueducts were so well built that some are still in use to this day. Rome’s famous Trevi Fountain, for instance, is supplied by a restored version of the Aqua Virgo, one of ancient Rome’s 11 aqueducts.

2. Concrete

Many ancient Roman structures like the Pantheon, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum are still standing today thanks to the development of Roman cement and concrete. The Romans first began building with concrete over 2,100 years ago and used it throughout the Mediterranean basin in everything from aqueducts and buildings to bridges and monuments. Roman concrete was considerably weaker than its modern counterpart, but it has proved remarkably durable thanks to its unique recipe, which used slaked lime and a volcanic ash known as pozzolana to create a sticky paste. Combined with volcanic rocks called tuff, this ancient cement formed a concrete that could effectively endure chemical decay. Pozzolana helped Roman concrete set quickly even when submerged in seawater, enabling the construction of elaborate baths, piers and harbors.

3. Newspapers

The Romans were known to contribute to public discourse through the use of official texts detailing military, legal and civil issues. Known as Acta Diurna, or “daily acts,” these early newspapers were written on metal or stone and then posted in heavily trafficked areas like the Roman Forum. Acta are believed to have first appeared around 131 B.C. and typically included details of Roman military victories, lists of games and gladiatorial bouts, birth and death notices and even human interest stories. There was also an Acta Senatus, which detailed the proceedings of the Roman senate. These were traditionally withheld from public view until 59 B.C., when Julius Caesar ordered their publication as part of the many populist reforms he instituted during his first consulship.

4. Welfare

Ancient Rome was the wellspring for many modern government programs, including measures that subsidized food, education and other expenses for the needy. These entitlement programs date back to 122 B.C., when the tribune Gaius Gracchus instituted lex frumentaria, a law that ordered Rome’s government to supply its citizens with allotments of cheaply priced grain. This early form of welfare continued under Trajan, who implemented a program known as “alimenta” to help feed, clothe and educate orphans and poor children. Other items including corn, oil, wine, bread and pork were eventually added to the list of price-controlled goods, which may have been collected with tokens called “tesserae.” These generous handouts helped Roman emperors win favor with the public, but some historians have argued that they also contributed to Rome’s economic decline.

5. Bound Books

For most of human history, literature took the form of unwieldy clay tablets and scrolls. The Romans streamlined the medium by creating the codex, a stack of bound pages that is recognized as the earliest incarnation of the book. The first codices were made of bound wax tablets, but these were later replaced by animal skin parchment that more clearly resembled pages. Ancient historians note that Julius Caesar created an early version of a codex by stacking pages of papyrus to form a primitive notebook, but bound codices did not become popular in Rome until the first century or thereabouts. Early Christians became some of the first to adopt the new technology, using it extensively to produce copies of the Bible.

6. Roads and Highways

At its height, the Roman empire encompassed nearly 1.7 million square miles and included most of southern Europe. To ensure effective administration of this sprawling domain, the Romans built the most sophisticated system of roads the ancient world had ever seen. These Roman roads—many of which are still in use today—were constructed with a combination of dirt, gravel and bricks made from granite or hardened volcanic lava. Roman engineers adhered to strict standards when designing their highways, creating arrow-straight roads that curved to allow for water drainage. The Romans built over 50,000 miles of road by 200 A.D., primarily in the service of military conquest. Highways allowed the Roman legion to travel as far as 25 miles per day, and a complex network of post houses meant that messages and other intelligence could be relayed with astonishing speed. These roads were often managed in the same way as modern highways. Stone mile markers and signs informed travelers of the distance to their destination, while special complements of soldiers acted as a kind of highway patrol.

7. Roman Arches

Arches have existed for roughly 4,000 years, but the ancient Romans were the first to effectively harness their power in the construction of bridges, monuments and buildings. The ingenious design of the arch allowed the weight of buildings to be evenly distributed along various supports, preventing massive Roman structures like the Colosseum from crumbling under their own weight. Roman engineers improved on arches by flattening their shape to create what is known as a segmental arch and repeating them at various intervals to build stronger supports that could span large gaps when used in bridges and aqueducts. Along with columns, domes and vaulted ceilings, the arch became one of the defining characteristics of the Roman architectural style.

8. The Julian Calendar

The modern Gregorian calendar is modeled very closely on a Roman version that dates back more than 2,000 years. Early Roman calendars were likely cribbed from Greek models that operated around the lunar cycle. But because the Romans considered even numbers unlucky, they eventually altered their calendar to ensure that each month had an odd number of days. This practice continued until 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar and the astronomer Sosigenes instituted the Julian system to align the calendar with the solar year. Caesar lengthened the number of days in a year from 355 to the now-familiar 365 and eventually included the 12 months as we know them today. The Julian calendar was almost perfect, but it miscalculated the solar year by 11 minutes. These few minutes ultimately threw the calendar off by several days. This led to the adoption of the nearly identical Gregorian calendar in 1582, which fixed the discrepancy by altering the schedule of leap years.

9. The Twelve Tables and the Corpus Juris Civilis

Subpoena, habeas corpus, pro bono, affidavit—all these terms derive from the Roman legal system, which dominated Western law and government for centuries. The basis for early Roman law came from the Twelve Tables, a code that formed an essential part of the constitution during the Republican era. First adopted around 450 B.C., the Twelve Tables detailed laws regarding property, religion and divorce and listed punishments for everything from theft to black magic. Even more influential than the Twelve Tables was the Corpus Juris Civilis, an ambitious attempt to synthesize Rome’s history of law into one document. Established by the Byzantine emperor Justinian between 529 and 535 A.D., the Corpus Juris included modern legal concepts such as the notion that the accused is innocent until proven guilty. After the fall of the Roman empire, it became the basis for many of the world’s legal systems. Along with English common law and sharia law, Roman law remains hugely influential and is still reflected in the civil laws of several European nations as well as the U.S. state of Louisiana.

10. Battlefield Surgery

The Romans invented many surgical tools and pioneered the use of the cesarean section, but their most valuable contributions to medicine came on the battlefield. Under the leadership of Augustus, they established a military medical corps that was one of the first dedicated field surgery units. These specially trained medics saved countless lives through the use of Roman medical innovations like hemostatic tourniquets and arterial surgical clamps to curb blood loss. Roman field doctors also performed physicals on new recruits and helped stem the spread of disease by overseeing sanitation in military camps. They were even known to disinfect instruments in hot water before use, pioneering a form of antiseptic surgery that was not fully embraced until the 19th century. Roman military medicine proved so advanced at treating wounds and promoting wellness that soldiers tended to live longer than the average citizen despite constantly facing the hazards of combat.

Were Roman slaves hungry?

Were Roman slaves hungry?

Monday, November 12, 2012  Jean Noël Tribolo  

What was it like to be a slave in the Roman Empire? The answer, according to the latest excavations at Vagnari, is that slaves were rather better looked after than one might expect: they ate quite well, they suffered less from childhood starvation than did the population in general, and when they died, the grave goods they were buried with suggested that they were certainly not living in abject poverty.

This at least was the implication of research that was revealed in a recent conference held at Edinburgh University organised by Alastair Small on 26th – 28th October 2012, when Alistair Small and his associates told us about their latest work at Vagnari.

Vagnari is the name of an abandoned farmstead – you will not find it on any map, but it lies just outside the town of Gravina, near Bari in Apulia. Here Professor Small has been excavating for nearly 40 years, at first in the nearby hillfort of Botromagno, and subsequently doing field surveys over the whole area which revealed an interesting site at Vagnari: we have already covered the whole history in Current Archaeology 45. But in the Roman imperial period, it appears to have been an imperial estate, centred round a tile works, and one of the tiles was found stamped with the name of Grati Caesaris, which means the work of Gratus, slave of Caesar. And the argument goes that if the person who stamped his name on the tiles was a slave of Caesar, then presumably this was an imperial estate and all the other workers would have been, if not slaves as least as the very lowest end of society. Nearly 100 skeletons have now been excavated from a cemetery at the site, and the results of the extensive work on those skeletons carried out by Tracey Prowse of McMaster University in Canada are extremely illuminating.

An analysis of the grave goods by Liana Brent suggested that they were relatively well provided for in the next world, with an average of 7.4 grave goods for the males and 4.4 for the females. Indeed two of the skeletons were buried with spears and the spear tips were rounded showing that they had been used, presumably for hunting. It is difficult to see slaves possessing spears and using them and being buried with them, so perhaps these were tenants, coloni. Is this the reality of slavery in the Roman world?She has now examined nearly 100 skeletons, and 656 teeth which are particularly interesting as they give evidence for childhood stress. If you go through phases of malnutrition in childhood there will be bands in your teeth to reveal this stress. On this analysis Vagnari showed up remarkably well. Indeed comparing the Vagnari evidence with other known collections of teeth from Italy, Vagnari was among the best. And if Vagnari was a cemetery of slaves, then slaves were better fed than the normal population.

But were they slaves? And was this an imperial estate? Indeed what do we mean by an imperial estate? In loose terminology, an imperial estate is often thought to be state property, but in the Roman world there was a sharp distinction: in the early Republican period, the imperial estates were called the patrimonium, but by the third and fourth centuries it was called the res privata, to distinguish it from the res publica, that is the property owned by the Senate and People of Rome (SPQR). The res private was often very extensive, for when rivals to the Emperor were condemned, their was confiscated by the Emperor and became res privata: indeed Domenico Vera, Professor at Parma University, pointed out that in A.D. 422, 18.5% of taxable land in Africa proconsularis was res private. A

He introduced the concept of an Emphyteutic lease, which again I must confess I had not heard of, but which apparently existed in Roman law and is still found today in Quebec and most of Latin America. It is a long-term lease for a period of up to 99 years where the lessee agrees to add improvements to the property over the period of the lease so as to increase the value at the end of the lease period. But in return there is a reduced rent, or sometimes even a peppercorn rent. Apparently the Italian government has proposed that some of their historic buildings might be leased out to the public or companies on an Emphyteutic lease. Indeed the National Trust makes similar sorts of agreements. But were such Emphyteutic leases used in imperial estates where the land would be leased at a moderate rent which would guarantee the emperor a steady and constant income stream, but at the same time give the lessee every incentive to manage the property well?But the res privata was often rented out on long-term leases so that it often became virtually indistinguishable from privately owned land. The matter was discussed in a splendid guest lecture given by Nicholas Purcell, the new Camden Professor of Ancient History at Oxford, succeeding Alan Bowman who has just retired. I must confess I had not met Professor Purcell before, but I think Oxford has got another hit on its hands: it was an absolutely superb lecture, very thought provoking in content and beautifully delivered — just the sort of lecture that the Camden Professor should deliver. He began – horror of horrors with a quotation from Adam Smith – Oxford professors are all meant to be left-wing and should not be quoting right-wing people like Adam Smith. But times are a-changing, even at Oxford, and he quoted “No two characters seem more inconsistent than those of trader and sovereign”. And he went on to ask just how imperial estates (the sovereign) were run (by traders?)

Other new concepts were introduced such as coloni or inquilini (a term that apparently is still in use in Italian and Spanish meaning tenant). I know about coloni who were free tenants, until under Diocletian they were tied to the soil and thus turned into serfs. But should we perhaps think that there may not have been such a sharp distinction between slaves and freedmen, but recognise that there were probably gradations in between

Another fascinating talk was by Philip Kenrick who is becoming the great pottery guru for the whole of the Mediterranean. There is one great oddity in the Vagnari pottery – a small but significant proportion of it comes from Illyria, that is modern Albania and Yugoslavia. This is an off-shoot of the very extensive excavations under Richard Hodges at Butrint in Albania, which is producing a massive database of material of all periods. And some of the pottery specialists trained at Butrint have been coming to Italy and have been looking at the pottery and saying “Hi, that is Butrint pottery”. We are used to the idea that in southern Italy many of the finewares in the early period, the terra sigillata, come from north Italy, to be replaced in the late period by African red slip wares. But Illyria is actually nearer than north Italy or Africa, so there is no reason why Illyrian potters could not be selling their wares in southern Italy.

There were many other fascinating lectures, but it is clear that archaeology is beginning to produce an entirely new story of the history of the Roman conquest of southern Italy that is rather different from the successes of the Roman conquest of northern Italy.He suggested that we should look for a new terminology of redslip wares. Here in Britain we normally call them Samian pottery, which form the dominant finewares of the first and second centuries. In Italy and the Mediterranean such wares tend to be called terra sigillata, or Arretine wares, being produced not in Gaul but in northern Italy, but with the same technique of red pottery with a red slip on the surface, and elaborate moulded decoration. And just as in Britain Samian dies out at the end of the second century, so in the Mediterranian, the north Italian potteries around Arezzo die out and are replaced by African red slip wares. He suggested that we should use the term common slipped wares or regional slipped wares to cover all this pottery that was so ubiquitous throughout the Roman empire.

“Museum senior conservator Jim DeYoung with the janitor, while fabricating its shipping crate. Duane Hanson (American, 1925-1996), Janitor, 1973. Photo by Terri White.” (Milwaukee Art Museum)

Nov. 12, 1939: This photo, published shortly after the start of the Second World War, ran with this caption: “The Winged Victory of Samothrace, another great achievement of the ancient Greek sculptors, packed for removal in accordance with plans for its protection formulated far in advance of the war.” A 2009 exhibition at the Louvre showed photos documenting how art was relocated for safety during wartime. Photo: The New York Times