Roman towns and houses

Grid pattern Atrium

Forum Peristylium
Amphitheatre Mosaics
Circus Murals
Public baths Frescoes
Aqueducts Oil lamps
Sewage system Stoves
Two main streets Villas
Town walls Poor Romans – plebeians –
Main gates apartments
Rich Romans – patricians – private Lower floor – stone
houses Upper stories – timber
Domus Richer people – lower stories
Plain from outside Poorer people – higher up
Blank walls fire
Shops

When Romans conquered new territory, they built towns. They were
built in a grid pattern, with streets at right angles to each other. The
forum or marketplace was a large open space in the centre of town
where people met and shopped. The amphitheatre was a circular or
oval-shaped open-air arena in which gladiatorial contests were held.
The circus was a stadium for chariot-racing. Romans went to the public
baths to wash and also to meet people. Aqueducts were used to supply
water to the fountains. Drains under the streets were used to remove
sewage. The two main streets of the town ran north-south and east-
west. The town walls were built for defence. There were four or more
main gates, with roads leading to nearby towns. Wealthy and powerful
Romans were called patricians. Only these wealthy people lived in
private houses. The private house was called the domus. They looked
plain from the outside, with blank walls facing the street. The front of
the house was often occupied by shops. The family entered the narrow
corridor, which lead to the atrium, an open courtyard with a pool in the
middle to catch rainwater. At the rear of the house was the peristylium,
or walled garden. The floors were covered in mosaics. The walls were
decorated with murals, usually country scenes or portraits. These
murals were frescoes, that is, they were made by painting on wet
plaster. The houses were lit by oil lamps and heated by braziers or
stoves. Very rich Romans also had villas, that is, large houses in the
country. Most Romans were called plebeians. Plebeians were often
poor and lived in apartment blocks. The lower storeys were built of
stone, while upper storeys were built of timber. Better-off families
rented a number of well-furnished rooms on the lower floors. Poorer
families lived on the upper floors, in bad conditions in bare rooms.
Wood-burning stoves provided heat, but there was a great danger of
fire.