Aqueduct; 2. peristyle; 3. verandah; 4. atrium; 5. facade; 6. portico.

a) a colonnade surrounding either the exterior of a building or an open space, e.g. a courtyard;

b) the main hall of an ancient Roman house, containing an opening to the sky through which rainwater falls to a tank or cistern below (impluvium);

c) a covered entrance whose roof is supported by a series of columns or piers, commonly placed at the front entrance to a building;

d) a channel for supplying water; often underground, but treated architecturally on high arches when crossing valleys or low ground;

e) the exterior face of a building which is the architectural front, sometimes distinguished from the other faces by elaboration of architectural or ornamental details;

f) an open porch or balcony, usually covered, that extends along the outside of a house or other building .

       

3. Form new words with the help of the following suffixes or prefixes and translate them:

a) multi-: national, cultural, coloured, purpose, form, screen.

b)  -ability: to rely, to absorb, to credit, to avail, to vary, to move, to change.

c) -an: basilica, Rome, America, Europe, Korea, Russia, Italy.|

4. Give the English equivalents of the following words and expressions:

Недостаток;

преимущество;

принять решение;

оси;

приспособить;

облицовывать;

походить;

обратить что-либо себе на пользу;

установить баланс;

цветовая гамма;

расширять деятельность;

великолепный;

штукатурить;

место для строительства;

расчет прочности;

заменить.

5. Read the text and answer the question «Why are the Romans considered to have been innovators in architecture?”

Roman architecture continued the legacy left by the earlier architects of the Greek world. The architects of Rome followed the guidelines established by the classical orders. However, the Romans were also great innovators and they quickly adopted new construction techniques, used new materials, and uniquely combined existing techniques with creative design to produce a whole range of new architectural structures such as the basilica, triumphal arch, monumental aqueduct, amphitheatre, granary building, and residential housing block. Many of these innovations were a response to the changing practical needs of Roman society, and these projects were all backed by a state apparatus which funded, organized, and spread them around the Roman world, guaranteeing their permanence so that many of these great edifices survive to the present day. The Romans also created the composite capital which mixed the volute of the Ionic order with the acanthus leaves of the Corinthian. The Tuscan column was another adaptation of a traditional idea which was a form of Doric column but with a smaller capital, more slender shaft without flutes, and a moulded base. The Tuscan column was especially used in domestic architecture such as peristyles and verandahs. Columns continued to be used even when they were no longer structurally necessary. This was to give buildings a traditional and familiar look, for example the front of the Pantheon in Rome.

As the Empire expanded, ideas and even craftsmen became integrated into the Roman architectural industry, often following their familiar materials like marble to the sites of construction. The evidence of eastern influence can be seen in such features as papyrus leaves in capitals, sculptured pedestals, street colonnades, and the nymphaeum (ornamental fountain). Besides marble, travertine white limestone was also made available from quarries near Tivoli, and its favourability towards precise carving and inherent load-bearing strength made it a favourite substitute for marble amongst Roman architects from the 1st century BC. It was especially used for paving, door and window frames, and steps. Sun-dried mud bricks had been used for centuries and continued to be used for more modest projects up to the 1st century BC, but fired bricks had the advantage of durability and could be carved just like stone to resemble such standard architectural features as capitals and dentils. Stucco was used to face brick walls and could be carved, like bricks could be, to reproduce the architectural decorations previously rendered only in stone.

In domestic architecture three types of dwelling were developed; the domus or town house, the insula or multi-storey apartment house and the villa or suburban house. The domus derived from the Greek house was usually of one storey only and inward-looking, the rooms were grouped axially and symmetrically around the atrium and one or more peristyle courts. The street façade was plain. The insula      had several identical but separate floors and was vaulted throughout with concrete construction. The villa was more casual and straggling in plan than the domus. Their exteriors were enlivened with porticos and colonnades, rooms were designed to catch the view, or the sun in winter or the shade in summer.

The Romans were great builders and engineers famous for their factories, roads, aqueducts, and bridges, grand thermae and amphitheatres, theatres and temples. Roman architecture has provided us with magnificent structures that have, stood the test of time. By combining a wide range of materials with daring designs, the Romans were able to push the boundaries of physics and turn architecture into an art form. The result was that architecture became an imperial tool to demonstrate to the world that Rome was culturally superior.

 

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