ground-fl oor apartments were well appointed and large, while
the units on the upper fl oors were smaller, some having only
a single room. Th e most desirable apartments were on street
level rather than up several fl ights of stairs. Most insulae were
dark and uncomfortable, judging from the ancient written
descriptions of them. Authors report the cooking odors of
other tenants, rats’ and pigeons’ nests, leaky roofs, and noisy
neighbors. Th e only latrine in the building was on the ground
fl oor, near the entrance to the insula. Fires were common in
these apartment buildings, especially because most residents
did their cooking on braziers in the hallways of the building.
Concrete construction and strict building codes in some cit-
ies alleviated some of these dangers.
At the other end of the spectrum of domestic architec-
ture from the insula was the villa. While some villas were
simply large, but modest farmhouses, many were the luxury
estates of the very wealthy. Most Roman elites would have
more than one home, and villas in the countryside and at the
seaside were very popular. Th e structure of an extra-urban or
suburban villa varied greatly throughout the empire but was
generally spacious and well decorated. Some villas included
smaller versions of the amenities found in cities, like baths,
theaters, and libraries. Th e villa of the emperor Hadrian at
Tivoli outside Rome was, in fact, like a small city enriched by
pools, gardens, covered walking paths, and at least one tem-
ple. Although it was commissioned by Hadrian in the fi rst
quarter of the second century c.e., it apparently served as a
villa for later emperors who enjoyed all its luxuries and tran-
quility outside the busy city of Rome.
Other emperors constructed impressive and grandiose
villas within the city, which were actually urban palaces.
Domitian, who ruled from 81 to 96 c.e., commissioned the
architect Rabirius to build a three-part complex on the Pala-
tine Hill in Rome. Like many villas, the palace was multi-
functional and included spaces for entertainment, offi cial
business, and residential use. Th e public wing of the palace
even included a basilica where Domitian could preside from
an elevated tribunal under a vaulted niche.
LATER INFLUENCE
Th e remains of Roman architecture have been enormously
infl uential in Western culture. Many of the government
buildings and memorials in Washington, D.C., for example,
exhibit distinctly Roman forms and decoration. Th is long af-
terlife of Roman style and structure is well deserved, for the
ancient architects created new types of structures, improved
and expanded upon the use of various materials, and com-
bined the infl uences of other cultures into a useful and attrac-
tive architectural vocabulary.
THE AMERICAS
BY JULIA MARTA CLAPP
Th e geographical regions of North, Central, and South Amer-
ica are distinguished by profoundly diverse climates. Ancient
Andeans lived in arid areas and tropical ones, at sea level and
in mountainous areas. Th e region known as Mesoamerica in-
cluded wetlands and dry land, civilizations located at high
altitudes and those positioned near bodies of water. Mound
builders in North America lived in the fl at, temperate climate
of what is now the eastern United States. Ancient American
architecture is both specifi c to its environmental conditions
and universal among varying peoples and eras.
For ancient Americans, religious ritual was at the cen-
ter of cultural life, and this was refl ected in their architec-
ture. Many of the structures that remain are public buildings,
plazas, and temples where ceremonies and rituals were per-
formed. Th e construction, decoration, and even cardinal
orientation of these buildings were symbolically related to re-
ligion and cosmology. Th e importance of symbolism cannot
be overstated in ancient American culture.THE OLMEC
Th e region known as Mesoamerica included the southern
half of present-day Mexico and extended approximately to
present-day Costa Rica. Generally recognized as the oldest
civilization in Mesoamerica, the Olmec lived in Mexico along
the southern coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Far less is known
about the Olmec than about later groups. Some estimates
locate the birth of the Olmec civilization possibly as early as
1500 b.c.e., but there remains some variation in the group’s
dating. Its decline is generally located at 400 b.c.e., spanning
the Early and Middle Preclassic eras.
Th e earliest Olmec cities were San Lorenzo (1500–1200
b.c.e.) and La Venta (1200–400 b.c.e.). At Olmec archaeologi-
cal sites, evidence remains of housing and royal compounds
as well as ceremonial and civic structures. While La Venta
and San Lorenzo are best known for their spectacular colos-
sal heads made of basalt, there is also evidence of great archi-
tectural structures. San Lorenzo has remains of both grand
and modest housing structures, which indicate that Olmec
society—not unlike much of Mesoamerica—was profoundly
hierarchical. Houses were constructed by assembling pole-
and-thatch systems to create walls and roofs, which is similar
to modern-day techniques used in the area. Th e Olmec also
constructed buildings with compacted earth.
Archaeologists have discovered what is now known as
the Royal Compound, an elite residential area for Olmec
rulers. Th e compound’s Red Palace included a workshop
where stone sculpture was produced. Th e Red Palace features
basalt roof supports, gravel fl oors, and mud walls. For un-
known reasons, the workshop ceased production in about
1200 b.c.e., but the compound contains the remains of much
sculpture. Archaeological research uncovered a collection of
basalt stones that, based on their shape, are believed to have
once formed an aqueduct to the Royal Compound. It is pos-
sible that the aqueduct was used to bring fresh water to the
city’s inhabitants. Th e construction of the aqueduct as well as
monolithic sculpture suggests that the Olmec were quite ad-
vanced in the fi elds of mathematics and engineering. Because82 architecture: The Americas