Videos

Tombs in ancient Rome were structures of varying dimensions (holding individual bodies and/ or ashes of deceased or containing entire households or communities) that were the focus of daily and annual rituals. Burial plots would range from...

Theaters in Rome were constructed temporarily in the Republican era for annual festivals, notably for Magna Mater on the Palatine and Apollo in the Campus Martius. The structures were made of wood and set up fo the performances, then dismantled...

The arch is one of the most quintessential features of Roman architecture. It appears in aqueduct arcades, bridges, and many monumental structures like free-standing amphitheaters, stadiums, etc. Although the Romans didn’t create the arch...

The temple remains visible on the Via delle Botteghe Oscure were discovered during the 1930s CE urban renewal project. The two columns were re-erected in the 1950s CE on the temple podium. The column drums are travertine, faced with stucco...

The Romans employed the arch in the construction of their bridges to span the Tiber River, approximately 100 m wide. The actual arches were composed of voussoir blocks typically faced in ashlar blocks (tuff, travertine) with a concrete rubble...

The Colosseum (the Flavian amphitheater) is the largest amphitheater the Romans ever constructed, with a circumference of 545 m, height of 50 m, 189m long and 156m wide. The exterior wall of travertine stone has been estimated to 100,000...

Check out our Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/teded View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-byzantine-empire-leonora-neville Most history books will tell you that the Roman Empire fell in the fifth...

Check out our Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/teded View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-tragic-myth-of-orpheus-and-eurydice-brendan-pelsue The marriage of Orpheus, the greatest of all poets and musicians, to Eurydice...

Explore the ancient Greek philosophy of cynicism, which calls for the rejection of materialism and conformity in favor of a simple life. — In the 4th century BCE, a young Diogenes of Sinope was found to be counterfeiting coins. He...

Explore the history and technology of Viking longships, which helped the Scandinavians conquer trade routes and new territories. — As the Roman Empire flourished, Scandinavians had small settlements and no central government. Yet by...