Meanwhile in California, USA I've had to replace the foundation on my home because it was forty years old, and was deteriorating under the crushing weight of a single story residence made of wood and gypsum board.
It's survivorship bias. For every Roman building that exists today, there were probably tens or even hundreds of thousands of poorly built buildings that have been completely lost to time.
@@pepperonish buildings aren’t built for longevity anymore. Give it 2000 years and none of our current day structures will be still standing. It’s not survivorship bias, it’s a testament to romes incredible engineering
There's a roman built lighthouse in northern Spain, 55meters high, that's still being used today and has rarely stopped working in the last 2000 years. Even during maintenance and light upgrades a way must be insured that it does not stop shinning since ship traffic is counting on it.
If you spent your life at sea you would know how reasuring it is to see the expected flashes where they are supposed to be. When you have €50M cargo you can never be too careful. Do pilots always land planes solely by instrument without looking outside and seeing the runway?
escape the matrix trust me (I'm sure you've heard of that many times, only once is it true) come this way you'll get it when you get it when you get it, pray for us all as all of us who get it do it for the rest hurry
La maison carré in Nîmes, France, is the most intact marble temple of the empire. The Roman theatre of orange is also in such fabulous complete state...
I was waiting for it to pop up! So much missing from the list, basically nothing from France or Spain, and so little from North Africa or even Italy. But isn't that the amazing thing? That you could make this video three times longer, and there would STILL be countless things missing
@@bryanspindle4455 that's great ... It has been used ever since it's constructional ND remain a master class in Romain temple proportions. Another one was the partheno, unfortunately it was blown by the Turks or the Brits because they used it as ammunition stockm.. we almost could have seen the most magnificent Greek temple in it's full form
Diocletian's palace in Split is one of my absolute favorite places to visit. It's incredibly well preserved and it's a living reminder of the past. Walking down the marble streets at night is absolutely magical.
The palace is one thing, the other thing is Salona, the birthplace of the emperor whose ruins can be still discovered. Its just a suburb of split. On your way there you pass several sights as an aquaduct
Without a doubt the Pantheon is my favorite Roman building. Every time I visit there is more to see and to be filled with wonder. While I know that the catacombs aren’t buildings they also fill me with awe and wonder that people without all of our modern construction tools were able to construct not only miles of burial niches but chapels and meeting rooms underground. Mind boggling.😮
It's so incredible. We have a couple of videos on it already- but need to update it soon! @dariusarya has a couple that are featuring the oculus sunlight
And the ancient Aqua Virgo aqueduct, which was completed in 19 BC by Marcus Agrippa- the man responsible for building the Pantheon- brought fresh water underground to the public baths next to the Pantheon. It also still brings water to the Trevi Fountain
Aside from the Pantheon of Rome, two of the best preserved roman temples can be seen in France : the Maison carrée ("square house") in Nîmes, and the temple of Augustus and Livia in Vienne. The theatre of Orange may also be one of the best preserved theatres in the whole empire, with a nearly complete scene building.
When my family and I moved to Germany years ago a neighbor invited us to go on a volksmarch that meandered through a beautiful forest. When I commented on the lovely stone path we were walking on, my host informed me that we were on an ancient Roman road. It took my breath away to know that I was walking on a road that was over 2,000 years old. As an American, we tend to tear down anything much over 50 years or so. We do have buildings that date back to the 1600's on the East coast but not where I come from. The closest we come is ancient Native American structures, but actually, few Americans have actually seen them in person because most are so remote. Love your series.
@@johnschrader8363 ...I am truly sorry that I do not remember exactly where in Germany it is. I think it might have been somewhere near Karlsruhe. I lived in Germany 11 years and travelled all over Europe every single weekend I lived there. I can tell you that Trier is my favorite city in Germany for remarkable Roman ruins. The Porta Nigra is incredible. It is a Roman wall\ gate that is still fairly intact. The Roman baths are also wonderful. There are ancient remains all over Europe and, as someone pointed out, the Mediterranean area. Some are completely intact and some are decayed due to time and people disassembling ancient buildings for constructing newer ones. Indeed, for an American, living in a place with so much history that you can actually touch is amazing.
@@amberfuchscia709 Np mate, I've also been to trier and it is a gorgeous city. I also really like the amphitheather there and the roman bridge thats still intact!!
There's a section of the ancient Road to Galliae in Pont St. Martin, Val d'Aoste, NW Italy, the road to France via Grand St. Bernard pass. Speaking of France, how about the magnificent Pont du Gard, near Arles?
The Diocletian baths are totally overlooked by tourist guides. The first time i went to Rome I knew nothing about them, I visited the church and admired the various domes etc around the area not knowing they were all from the same complex until I actually visited the museum. The site is/was massive.
Just back from Rome. After touring the Coliseum, the forum and Pantheon I am awed by the monumental engineering of these impressive structures. Huge imposing beautiful architectural buildings projecting power and culture.
@@anonymous-hz2un I believe sub saharan Africans had never constructed anything more than one story village and nomadic huts. Many made from cattle dung.
The Nimes Arena still hosts annual Roman Games (I believe around March or April), which is my argument for the most interesting experience in a well preserved Roman building. It's one thing to be in a 2,000 year old building and wonder how it must have been when it was new, it's something most of us can't even fathom to get to take in the entertainment that would have been there 2,000 years ago.
Yes it's great. Darius filmed a show there some time ago. We need to go back! (There are many more videos- a whole series- we will do to cover more of these amazingly well preserved structures.
Roman games (Les Jeux Romain) are in May. You have to see The Amphithéâtre (les arènes), La maison Carrée (temple for augustus family), La tour Magne (the main tower of the wall that protect the city), le castelum (their only two of them on in Nîmes and the other at Pompéi), la porte Auguste (main entrance back then), la porte de France (little Entrance), Also, their is a Musée de la Romanité near the Arènes. Trust me I am Nîmois 😂
The Roman fort at Hardknott Pass (Mediobogdum) in England's Lake District is one of my favourite Roman sites in antiquity. It is remote, in the most stunning landscape, beneath and amidst England's highest mountains and is well preserved with curtain wall, internal structures, nearby bath house and parade ground to boot. If you're up this way I recommend you take a look (I'd even be your local guide). Ad altiora!
The Roman bath house in Bath England is probably the most well preserved Roman building in the UK and I'm surprised it didn't get mentioned in the video as it is so well preserved.
Also the Arena in Pula, Croatia. It is said to have the best preserved exteriors (mantel) amongst all Roman amphitheatres. Built at the same time as the one in Rome.
I saw lots of good Roman stuff while driving around Spain back in 1996. The aqueduct at Segovia was awesome, and Mérida (The name is a worn-down form of Emerita Augusta) had a theatre, amphitheatre, circus, aqueduct, villa, etc.
The Maison Carrée in Nimes, France is a completely intact Roman temple since, like the Pantheon, it was converted into a church. It served as the inspiration for many civic buildings in Europe and North America from the Renaissance onward. The new archeological museum The Musée de la Romanité in Nimes is also worth a visit. And while aqueducts may not count as buildings, one of my favorites, The Tarraco aqueduct, is just outside Tarragona, Spain. For late antiquity, Santa Sabina, on the Aventine Hill in Rome, resembles the Trier basilica and is completely intact with its beautiful marble revetment and Corinthian columns (from the imperial repository so not spoila). Only one large mosaic remains, but it is still impressive. One can only imagine how spectacular Constantine's massive Old St. Peter's Basilica must've been. I have yet to visit the intact churches of late antiquity in Ravenna. Regarding the Pantheon, when I visited I was told the floor marble is in fact the original (so not a copy).
Yes - indeed. The list isn't comprehensive -and we will certainly address the subject again - with so many more videos of great monuments- including those you cited.
Here's some from Bulgaria which are often overlooked. St.George's Routonda in Sofia. Build in the mid 4th century in what was then "Constantine's quarter". St. Sophia basilica 6th century contemporary to its grander sister Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, it gave the city of Sofia its name. The Roman Theater in Philippopolis (Plovdiv) 1st century, still used for performances weekly. The Ancient chariot racing stadium in Philippopolis (Plovdiv) 1st century, almost entirely preserved beneath the main pedestrian street, sections in the basements of shops and the entrance way are excavated, showing the amazing preservation.
It sometimes blows my mind when seeing Roman ruins in places like the Middle East and Egypt. They are so associated with a very foreign culture, a different people and a strange language. And yet, they also have the ruins of the same Empire as that of France, Spain, Italy, Romania... Even today, all over the western world, we still use their columns and their architecture. I mean, I'm even using their alphabet right now.
This east and west divide we know today is relatively new. Rome and Greece, which are ironically seen as the founders of Western Civilization, were historically more connected to the eastern Mediterranean and the near east. They saw the rest of continental as uncivilized barbarians, it's so funny how today Western Europe claims ancient Rome when ancient Romans definitely wouldn't be okay with that. In a very real sense, places like Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, the Levant, and Tunisia have just as much pf a right to claim Roman ancestry as western Europe does.
It must be unique to live in a place that has so much history. There is little where I live in the United States that is older than 60-70 years. And those things that are that old aren't great temples dedicated to long-neglected gods, but small railways bridges, irrigation canals, etc.
spent near 30 mins randomly surfing your reference, fren; ARL could do an entire vid on this bldg itself, imho. thx muxh for your note, wout which id likely never have heard of that Roman Rotunda so well preserved there!
Thanks for all these features. You might have added two (and I recommend everyone of you check them out) : the "maison carrée" in Nimes, Southern Franced, probably the most beautiful extant Roman temple, and the Roman arenas of both Nimes and Arles. More than impressive, and still used today.
In my town, Genova, Italia, and around there are some beautiful roman bridges, that are in excellent conditions and so beautiful to watch. It's crazy because one modern bridge built in the 1960 collapsed few years ago causing many deaths, and others bridges were destroyed by 4-5 gigantic floods in a period of 40-45 years (about 1970-2015).
I've been to the hall in Trier, absolutely superb. Not super preserved in terms of the whole building, but they recently uncovered another roman villa around my city in Buckinghamshire, England, with a stunning mosaic in very good condition.
Fascinating places. Hope this can continue with visits to other countries like Spain, England and France. There is a temple in Armenia that would also have been very interesting to include.
Really appreciate your videos. It allows me to recognize that the Roman architecture is really on a far smaller scale than my imagination would hold. Comparing the size of any of these buildings to anything our civilization has erected shows how difficult it was in fact to build in the ancient world that these buildings would be considered impressive.
Leptis Magna in Libya is incredible, was there in eighties, the beautiful marble sculptures were lying on the ground as if the city was inhabited yesterday
Actually, it was part of the Archbishops's fortified residence during the Middle Ages, that's why it is still there. But one has to admit that it was completely remodeled inside and partially demolished for that purpose. Had it not been reconstructed in the 19th century, it would not look as impressive and complete and authentically roman today.
I guess Pompeii and Herculaneum are kinda like cheating... I went to Rome last year and saw most of the buildings there that feature in this video, but now I'm getting pangs of regret that I didn't get a chance to go to the baths of Diocletian. On the other side of the coin, I did get to visit the Domus Aurea- the vast palace built by Nero on public land he appropriated following the Great Fire. This was such an unpopular move that after he died it was buried in rubble and the Baths of Titus were built on top. Because of this, it was astonishingly well preserved, but is completely underground. Only part of it has been cleared out and only part of that is open to the public, but you can book a guided tour, and it's truly amazing. You can walk for what seems like hundreds of metres through its completely intact halls, all under the earth. Many of the rooms still have their original plaster and magnificent frescos Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli and the ruins of Ostia (both near Rome) also have some impressively intact buildings.
I have yet to get inside the Curia . But I have went to see the original Bronze doors from it. These are found at the Basilica St Giovanni Laterano. They are magnificent. Great video.
Yes, lots more to cover! Thank you for the suggestion. As not a comprehensive list, we'll certainly address the theme with more structures in the future... for the aqueduct of Nimes, please see our recent AQUEDUCT video that features it (into the specus) as well as that of Segovia.
thanks for sharing : Aula Palatina it's near my home, this is the bewt well preserved basilic from Chistian roman period : made under emperor Constantin ! Porta nigra is also in Trier ! viva SPQR !!
Teier has one of Europe's richest architectural histories alive today. From truly ancient Roman buildings, medieval era and postwar modernism. One of the greatest cities in the world for architecture AND food AND wine! Love Trier!
The former capital of Lusitania, Augusta Emerita (nowadays Mérida) still has some magnificent Roman ruins, such as the theatre (still in use) , the circus, aqueducts, amphiteatrum ...and the aqueduct of Segovia is something to behold at least once in a lifetime, alongside the well preserved medieval historic centre. The lighthouse of Brigantium (nowadays A Coruña) , the ancient ruins of Segóbriga, the aqueduct of Albarracín - Cella, Tarraco (nowadays Tarragona), Las Médulas (the greatest gold mine of the Empire)...Spain is filled with important and well-preserved Roman ruins, it truly was one of the most romanized territories .
Fantastic video. Monuments that came spontaneously to my mind are: the Roman baths in Bath/UK, the Roman bridge in Córdoba/Spain, and perhaps the amphitheater in Arles/France, although it is not quite as well preserved as the two other monuments.
Thank you so much for your kind words. Yes, more to come- we like to produce videos from what we actually film.. .and we have so much more to share and visit.
@@henrykaspar3634 thank you! yes, that was our whole rationale. Some of those sites you'd recognize, we had hoped. Other ones were off most people's lists. More to come!
The Rotunda in Thessaloniki, Greece, is also an ancient Roman building very well preserved, mainly because it was converted into the church of Saint George in the byzantine middle ages.
2:46 - I can confirm that this market feels like it has been built yesterday. In fact, it does not take too long for modern buildings to fall into ruin.
The Impirial hall in Trier is really cool. It's made with really long red bricks which look like they would have broken easily. It's a remarkable work .
Maison carré en Nîmes, Porta Praetoria in Aosta, Arena in Verona and Arles, Bulla Regia and Dugga in Tunisia, are all very well preserved pieces of roman architecture. As well Regensburg in Germany features many good monuments.
There are offbeat places in Turkey that don't get a lot of visitors perhaps but have outstanding Roman buildings. Aphrodisias, for instance, has a wonderful stadium that is basically fully preserved. There are excellent Roman remnants throughout the Mediterranean if you travel around a bit.
You forgot to mention the theatre of Bosra in modern Syria. I visited it many times in my childhood. It is very well preserved and was still used for concerts until recently. However, it was hit during the recent war in Syria.
there is some good stuff in Saintes, France (near bordeux, saintes was the capital of the region in roman times), the local amphitheatre is great also the arc of germanicus, plus some great churches like abbaye aux dammes, the local cathedral, etc...
The amphitheater of El Jem is very beautiful but the one that has the best preserved, practically intact underground and all the structures for raising and managing the animals is that of Pozzuoli, perhaps even larger than the Tunisian one.
Agia Sophia was built as an Greek Orthodox church and served as the imperial church until Turko-jihadis converted the church to a mosque. This is an important detail that was omitted.
In the tapestry of time, the Roman Empire unfurls like a phoenix soaring across the skies, its wings outstretched, casting a colossal shadow over the annals of history. A force of nature that breathed life into the ancient world, it rose from the ashes of its own genesis, fueled by the fiery passions of its architects. The majesty of this ethereal titan is embodied in the very stones that make up its grand edifices; The Colosseum, a monument to the titanic struggle for survival and glory, stands as the sun at the center of this celestial empire. Its radiant beams of light illuminate the tapestry of time, casting vibrant hues upon the annals of history. Within its hallowed walls, the echoes of a thousand triumphant roars and the clash of steel reverberate through the ages, an eternal symphony that heralds the indomitable spirit of Rome. The Roman Forum, the bustling epicenter of politics, commerce, and culture, is a labyrinth of architectural marvels, where marble columns stretch towards the heavens like divine pillars. Here, the wisdom of Cicero and the stratagems of Caesar reverberate through the whispers of the wind, and the spirits of great statesmen and philosophers linger in these corridors, their astral forms intermingling with the cosmic dust of the ages. The Pantheon, an architectural supernova, explodes with divine energy and the boundless wisdom of the cosmos. Its celestial dome, encrusted with the jewels of the heavens, captures the essence of eternity within its hallowed sanctuary. A cosmic gateway to the divine, its oculus peers into the unfathomable depths of the universe, unraveling the mysteries of the celestial bodies that dance across the firmament. The aqueducts, the sinewy veins of the empire, stretch across the land like the arteries of a sleeping giant, carrying the lifeblood of civilization to the farthest corners of the known world. An eternal testament to the ingenuity of Rome, these stone serpents quench the thirst of the empire, irrigating the fertile fields that sustain her people and nourishing the dreams and ambitions of her countless denizens. The Roman Empire, a blazing comet in the night sky, illuminates the dark corners of history with the brilliance of its achievements. Its grandeur and glory, etched into the annals of time, are immortalized in the hearts and minds of those who bear witness to its splendor. A symbol of human aspiration, the Empire represents the indomitable will to conquer the unknown, to forge a legacy that transcends the boundaries of time, and to etch our names in the stars.
France has among the best preserved Roman monument and not a single word about it… Vienne, Nîmes, pont du Gard, Orange, Saintes. In Lyon they found back a complete mosaic floor some years ago by building an elevator for a subway station. The walls of Carcassonne are build on a still visible Roman fondation. Cluny bath in Paris is astonishing and now incorporating in the medieval museum of the french capital. The Vaison la Romaine bridge was built by romans and its still in use for cars, without saying it survived multiple floods (the last time the water raise by 13meters
Great video and thanks for posting. . . but if the Coliseum makes it, I don't know how the arenas in Verona, Nimes and Arles are not on the list. Moreover, doesn't Maison Carree also deserve mention? Nevertheless, thanks for posting.
We are really being redundant at this point... the video is short and NOT comprehensive- we are just happy to share places we have seen and personally have filmed - in recent months. Lots more to share- and we certainly appreciate positive comments like yours ... more "best preserved buildings" videos will indeed appear on our channel...
Really amazing stuff highlighted here. Pity it didn't include Bath (Somerset) or Viroconium near Wroxeter often referred to locally as 'The Old Works'.
I was unaware of how much was saved as a result of conversion to Catholic Church use. I am also pleased to see how much has since been returned to preservational historical monument status open to all. Gratis.
About 200m from where I am currently sitting at home typing is one of the oldest buildings on the Isle of Wight (Southern England). The Church of St. Edmund was built in 1068 just after the Norman Conquest and is now over 950 years old. Strange to think that when it was being built many of these remarkable places had already stood for over 750 years or more.
Great video. Thank you. I was expecting to see the marvelously well-preserved amphitheatre at Arles, France built in 90 A.D. where gladiator contests and chariot races were held in antiquity and the arena in Nimes, and the beautiful Pont du Gard aqueduct outside of Avignon France that is also extremely well-preserved, built in 19 B.C.
I've been to El Djem. It's wonderful, and preserved by the climate. You can imagine lions and gladiators and Christians and the crowd; terrifying theatre. And don't miss the museum nearby housing the mosaic floors from 14 nearby excavated Roman suburban houses, plus a garden full of statues and amphorae and whatever. Well worth hiring a taxi for the day to go and see.
I know of a Roman bridge over a river in the town of Vaison-la-Romaine in the south of France. This is not one of the major Roman monuments still standing, but I am amazed that it's been constantly used and still in use nowadays. I believe it's been restored and consolidated over time, but the fact is that its basic, original structure was so well designed that it's strong enough for having modern cars drive on it, almost 2000 years after its construction. Think of all the different people who've been using this bridge for close to two milleniums, from the days of the Roman Empire until today. Are we still able to build such lasting constructions?
Impressive video, thank you! What do you think about rebuiding ancient sites when the original materials and elements are preserved, either in situ or located in later buildings, reused? The castrum of Qasr Bshr is an easy answer, in my opinion its should be restored. But what about historical sites like Christian churches that reused Roman materials, should they be dismanteled to restore the original buildings? I know it's barely related but I have a doubt that's going around in my head, what the hell happened to the original pavement forum in Pompeii? I can't find an answer anywhere, if it was covered in ash, was it later stolen, why the pavement? why are there still some pieces remaining?
Thank you for your comments. Accurate rebuilding / restoration is very costly, to be conducted after a thorough study and evaluation of the materials. Original pieces are the core, with missing elements. made in other materials, for distinction. The castrum is, admittedly, in a very remote location, with few visitors. The road to the site isn't paved. These are also important factors that would influence such a project. We'd personally love it, but with limited resources available (worldwide) there are probably other options (more accessible and frequently) that would get the money first in Jordan.
The castrum is tricky- as it's isolated off the beaten path... and there are so many other amazing sites that no one will get to (thereby making them tourist destinations...) No, no one dismantles those kinds of churches... Pavement in Pompeii- as well as the statues that once adorned the many statue bases still on location? At later times people did indeed go back and rob out statuary and building material..
Meanwhile in California, USA I've had to replace the foundation on my home because it was forty years old, and was deteriorating under the crushing weight of a single story residence made of wood and gypsum board.
Yes, so amazing how the Romans built!
Actually building something so poorly and living in it is an incredible achievement too 😂
It's survivorship bias. For every Roman building that exists today, there were probably tens or even hundreds of thousands of poorly built buildings that have been completely lost to time.
@pepperonis well obviously, but let's not take away from the achievement of having a building still standing 1500 to 2000 years later.
@@pepperonish buildings aren’t built for longevity anymore. Give it 2000 years and none of our current day structures will be still standing. It’s not survivorship bias, it’s a testament to romes incredible engineering
There's a roman built lighthouse in northern Spain, 55meters high, that's still being used today and has rarely stopped working in the last 2000 years. Even during maintenance and light upgrades a way must be insured that it does not stop shinning since ship traffic is counting on it.
Tower of Hercules in Gallicia I think.
Its designed was based off the Lighthouse of Alexandria.
It's in A Coruna.
If you spent your life at sea you would know how reasuring it is to see the expected flashes where they are supposed to be. When you have €50M cargo you can never be too careful. Do pilots always land planes solely by instrument without looking outside and seeing the runway?
It's not working anymore bro.
escape the matrix
trust me (I'm sure you've heard of that many times, only once is it true)
come this way
you'll get it when you get it
when you get it, pray for us all
as all of us who get it do it for the rest
hurry
La maison carré in Nîmes, France, is the most intact marble temple of the empire. The Roman theatre of orange is also in such fabulous complete state...
I was waiting for it to pop up! So much missing from the list, basically nothing from France or Spain, and so little from North Africa or even Italy. But isn't that the amazing thing? That you could make this video three times longer, and there would STILL be countless things missing
I have a 130 year old antique engraving of the Maison Carre in my living room.
@@bryanspindle4455 that's great ... It has been used ever since it's constructional ND remain a master class in Romain temple proportions. Another one was the partheno, unfortunately it was blown by the Turks or the Brits because they used it as ammunition stockm.. we almost could have seen the most magnificent Greek temple in it's full form
its stunning and totally unexpected. I marveled at it. Its perfectly kept and looks gorgeous at night
@@DownMemoryLaneParis Venetians in XVII century. War with otoman empire.
Diocletian's palace in Split is one of my absolute favorite places to visit. It's incredibly well preserved and it's a living reminder of the past. Walking down the marble streets at night is absolutely magical.
Couldn't agree more!
The palace is one thing, the other thing is Salona, the birthplace of the emperor whose ruins can be still discovered. Its just a suburb of split. On your way there you pass several sights as an aquaduct
Without a doubt the Pantheon is my favorite Roman building. Every time I visit there is more to see and to be filled with wonder. While I know that the catacombs aren’t buildings they also fill me with awe and wonder that people without all of our modern construction tools were able to construct not only miles of burial niches but chapels and meeting rooms underground. Mind boggling.😮
It's so incredible. We have a couple of videos on it already- but need to update it soon! @dariusarya has a couple that are featuring the oculus sunlight
Yea, the Pantheon did it for me, too. No matter how many times I may go back to Rome, I would always return to the Pantheon.
If we consider building as the built environment, I would say, yes the catacombs are buildings.
And the ancient Aqua Virgo aqueduct, which was completed in 19 BC by Marcus Agrippa- the man responsible for building the Pantheon- brought fresh water underground to the public baths next to the Pantheon. It also still brings water to the Trevi Fountain
Aside from the Pantheon of Rome, two of the best preserved roman temples can be seen in France : the Maison carrée ("square house") in Nîmes, and the temple of Augustus and Livia in Vienne. The theatre of Orange may also be one of the best preserved theatres in the whole empire, with a nearly complete scene building.
Yes, they are wonderfully preserved! Future video!
There is one at Bosra in Syria like that.
Not to mention the spectacular Pont Du Gard aqueduct, I'm even surprised it did not make the list.
@@ChuckMarteau And the Barbegal waterfall.
When my family and I moved to Germany years ago a neighbor invited us to go on a volksmarch that meandered through a beautiful forest. When I commented on the lovely stone path we were walking on, my host informed me that we were on an ancient Roman road. It took my breath away to know that I was walking on a road that was over 2,000 years old. As an American, we tend to tear down anything much over 50 years or so. We do have buildings that date back to the 1600's on the East coast but not where I come from. The closest we come is ancient Native American structures, but actually, few Americans have actually seen them in person because most are so remote. Love your series.
The legacy of Ancient Rome is truly astounding - and covers so much of the Mediterranean - and beyond!
where was it Germany?
@@johnschrader8363 ...I am truly sorry that I do not remember exactly where in Germany it is. I think it might have been somewhere near Karlsruhe. I lived in Germany 11 years and travelled all over Europe every single weekend I lived there. I can tell you that Trier is my favorite city in Germany for remarkable Roman ruins. The Porta Nigra is incredible. It is a Roman wall\ gate that is still fairly intact. The Roman baths are also wonderful. There are ancient remains all over Europe and, as someone pointed out, the Mediterranean area. Some are completely intact and some are decayed due to time and people disassembling ancient buildings for constructing newer ones. Indeed, for an American, living in a place with so much history that you can actually touch is amazing.
@@amberfuchscia709 Np mate, I've also been to trier and it is a gorgeous city. I also really like the amphitheather there and the roman bridge thats still intact!!
There's a section of the ancient Road to Galliae in Pont St. Martin, Val d'Aoste, NW Italy, the road to France via Grand St. Bernard pass.
Speaking of France, how about the magnificent Pont du Gard, near Arles?
The Diocletian baths are totally overlooked by tourist guides. The first time i went to Rome I knew nothing about them, I visited the church and admired the various domes etc around the area not knowing they were all from the same complex until I actually visited the museum. The site is/was massive.
We agree! We have a couple of videos on the Baths of Diocletian- Museo delle Terme- check them on our MUSEUM section!
I am guilty of this. The Baths go to the top of the list for our next visit
it was my first big museum visited, almost accidentaly, bc it was very near to my hotel. Caracalla baths also are very underrated. Huge complex.
@@orizontereditar6349 Agree. We did make it to Caracalla's Baths. Amazing
Just back from Rome. After touring the Coliseum, the forum and Pantheon I am awed by the monumental engineering of these impressive structures. Huge imposing beautiful architectural buildings projecting power and culture.
Yes- and we still have a lot more information to share on them. Do check out our latest on the Colosseum games.
And yet their corruption destroyed them. Sad.
Africans got nothing to match but say they poor bcause collonialism 😂😂
@@anonymous-hz2un I believe sub saharan Africans had never constructed anything more than one story village and nomadic huts. Many made from cattle dung.
The Romans sure knew how to lay a lot of bricks. 👍
The Nimes Arena still hosts annual Roman Games (I believe around March or April), which is my argument for the most interesting experience in a well preserved Roman building. It's one thing to be in a 2,000 year old building and wonder how it must have been when it was new, it's something most of us can't even fathom to get to take in the entertainment that would have been there 2,000 years ago.
Yes it's great. Darius filmed a show there some time ago. We need to go back! (There are many more videos- a whole series- we will do to cover more of these amazingly well preserved structures.
We're in luck. He just successfully dug them out from his 2014 tv shoot!
Roman games (Les Jeux Romain) are in May. You have to see The Amphithéâtre (les arènes), La maison Carrée (temple for augustus family), La tour Magne (the main tower of the wall that protect the city), le castelum (their only two of them on in Nîmes and the other at Pompéi), la porte Auguste (main entrance back then), la porte de France (little Entrance), Also, their is a Musée de la Romanité near the Arènes. Trust me I am Nîmois 😂
Yes we will try to make it this year!
@@Nathan-vf9dq Yes, we have filmed there before. Will try to make it for the games!
The Roman fort at Hardknott Pass (Mediobogdum) in England's Lake District is one of my favourite Roman sites in antiquity. It is remote, in the most stunning landscape, beneath and amidst England's highest mountains and is well preserved with curtain wall, internal structures, nearby bath house and parade ground to boot. If you're up this way I recommend you take a look (I'd even be your local guide). Ad altiora!
Sounds great!
@@AncientRomeLive It is. Ad altiora! In more ways than one.
It's a great location, but I wouldn't say it's well preserved though as it's just low walls and foundations.
Yes, Hardknott Pass is an amazing place. It must have been a grim posting for the soldiers who were there.
The Roman bath house in Bath England is probably the most well preserved Roman building in the UK and I'm surprised it didn't get mentioned in the video as it is so well preserved.
Also the Arena in Pula, Croatia. It is said to have the best preserved exteriors (mantel) amongst all Roman amphitheatres. Built at the same time as the one in Rome.
I saw lots of good Roman stuff while driving around Spain back in 1996.
The aqueduct at Segovia was awesome, and Mérida (The name is a worn-down form of Emerita Augusta) had a theatre, amphitheatre, circus, aqueduct, villa, etc.
Yes we cover those aqueducts on our latest aqueduct video- have a look!
The Maison Carrée in Nimes, France is a completely intact Roman temple since, like the Pantheon, it was converted into a church. It served as the inspiration for many civic buildings in Europe and North America from the Renaissance onward. The new archeological museum The Musée de la Romanité in Nimes is also worth a visit. And while aqueducts may not count as buildings, one of my favorites, The Tarraco aqueduct, is just outside Tarragona, Spain.
For late antiquity, Santa Sabina, on the Aventine Hill in Rome, resembles the Trier basilica and is completely intact with its beautiful marble revetment and Corinthian columns (from the imperial repository so not spoila). Only one large mosaic remains, but it is still impressive. One can only imagine how spectacular Constantine's massive Old St. Peter's Basilica must've been. I have yet to visit the intact churches of late antiquity in Ravenna.
Regarding the Pantheon, when I visited I was told the floor marble is in fact the original (so not a copy).
Agree. Maison Carrée is missing on this list
Yes - indeed. The list isn't comprehensive -and we will certainly address the subject again - with so many more videos of great monuments- including those you cited.
@@jacobbusk6507 As is the Arènes de Nîmes and the Pont du Gard.
And the « temple romain d’Auguste et Livie » at Vienne in France…
Here's some from Bulgaria which are often overlooked. St.George's Routonda in Sofia. Build in the mid 4th century in what was then "Constantine's quarter". St. Sophia basilica 6th century contemporary to its grander sister Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, it gave the city of Sofia its name. The Roman Theater in Philippopolis (Plovdiv) 1st century, still used for performances weekly. The Ancient chariot racing stadium in Philippopolis (Plovdiv) 1st century, almost entirely preserved beneath the main pedestrian street, sections in the basements of shops and the entrance way are excavated, showing the amazing preservation.
Yes! A look around the Empire😌
As long as it lives in our hearts and inspires us to new greatness, it is not yet lost!
GRAZIE ! Siete assolutamente i MIGLIORI , è un grande piacere guardare le vostre narrazioni !
Truly amazing! Thank you so much for making this video.
Our pleasure
Good video and enthusiastic narration, great work!
Thank you for posting.
Love this, had no idea so much still preserved
Great video, I'm happy to say I've seen a few of these but of course so many things still to go.
Thanks for watching!😊
The Verona Arena needs to be on the list. It`s been in use for 2000 years almost.
It sometimes blows my mind when seeing Roman ruins in places like the Middle East and Egypt. They are so associated with a very foreign culture, a different people and a strange language. And yet, they also have the ruins of the same Empire as that of France, Spain, Italy, Romania... Even today, all over the western world, we still use their columns and their architecture. I mean, I'm even using their alphabet right now.
Some of my politicians still speak the Roman language (Latin)
Rome was truly the greatest civilization in the modern epoch (last 12,000 years)
We can hardly IMAGINE the glory that existed in the Atlantean epoch.
This east and west divide we know today is relatively new. Rome and Greece, which are ironically seen as the founders of Western Civilization, were historically more connected to the eastern Mediterranean and the near east. They saw the rest of continental as uncivilized barbarians, it's so funny how today Western Europe claims ancient Rome when ancient Romans definitely wouldn't be okay with that.
In a very real sense, places like Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, the Levant, and Tunisia have just as much pf a right to claim Roman ancestry as western Europe does.
I'll just mention an impressive Roman monument in my city, the Rotunda of Thessaloniki.
Yes, it's on our list to film!
It must be unique to live in a place that has so much history. There is little where I live in the United States that is older than 60-70 years. And those things that are that old aren't great temples dedicated to long-neglected gods, but small railways bridges, irrigation canals, etc.
@@tempest411 It's a real treat to live amidst the ruins of Rome! That is why we are so intent on showing the wonders of the Ancient world weekly!
spent near 30 mins randomly surfing your reference, fren; ARL could do an entire vid on this bldg itself, imho.
thx muxh for your note, wout which id likely never have heard of that Roman Rotunda so well preserved there!
@@scottragland9899 thank you. Yes, we have a lot more buildings to share from the Roman Empire. Check out our latest on Colosseum games!
As always, amazing work
Thank you!
Excellent video. Thank you.
Thank you, this is eye-opening, makes me want to travel, esp to Split
A great city (and nearby Salona). We will cover more Split in the near future.
I wish I could visit all of these places. Thank you for the virtual whirl wind tour of the ancient Roman Empire. Impressive.
Thank you!
The pantheon is amazing. Looking up for the first time is truly insane.
We agree!
Fantastic! Thanks!
Thanks for all these features. You might have added two (and I recommend everyone of you check them out) : the "maison carrée" in Nimes, Southern Franced, probably the most beautiful extant Roman temple, and the Roman arenas of both Nimes and Arles. More than impressive, and still used today.
i’d known about a few of these, but there were so many i had never even heard of! stunning buildings!
Thank you!
Nice to see Kiosk of Trajan getting some love.
Thanks for the video. I knew of some of these buildings but quite a few were new to me. Cool.
Glad you enjoyed!
In my town, Genova, Italia, and around there are some beautiful roman bridges, that are in excellent conditions and so beautiful to watch.
It's crazy because one modern bridge built in the 1960 collapsed few years ago causing many deaths, and others bridges were destroyed by 4-5 gigantic floods in a period of 40-45 years (about 1970-2015).
thanks for your infectious enthusiasm. truly magnificent and surreal, seems like we're breathing the same breaths as the ancients!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Awesome! I would also add the Arena di Verona, it's incredible that it is still being used after 2000 years
Good call! Yes, definitely we need to go and get new footage of it.
😊 thank you!
I've been to the hall in Trier, absolutely superb.
Not super preserved in terms of the whole building, but they recently uncovered another roman villa around my city in Buckinghamshire, England, with a stunning mosaic in very good condition.
The porta nigra which is also in Trier blew my mind as well. The Romans and their remnants are what binds all Europeans together.
I'm a new subscriber to your channel. Pls don't give up on making these kinds of videos. Greetings from Cebu City, Philippines.
Welcome! Yes, more on the way. Do check our latest today- inside the Colosseum.
Excellent video!
Thank you!
Love it.. Love it.. Love it.
Fascinating places. Hope this can continue with visits to other countries like Spain, England and France. There is a temple in Armenia that would also have been very interesting to include.
Really appreciate your videos. It allows me to recognize that the Roman architecture is really on a far smaller scale than my imagination would hold. Comparing the size of any of these buildings to anything our civilization has erected shows how difficult it was in fact to build in the ancient world that these buildings would be considered impressive.
Great video…Very informative
Glad you liked it. Thank you for your kind words.
Leptis Magna in Libya is incredible, was there in eighties, the beautiful marble sculptures were lying on the ground as if the city was inhabited yesterday
We would love to visit!
Wow! Thank you very much!
THANK YOU
Missing the Arena of Nîmes, which are amazingly still used as an arena today.
The building in Germany is amazing. It looks so modern from the outside. I’d do anything to be able to go back to that time for a day.
Luckily, it's so well preserved, leaves little to the imagination!
@@AncientRomeLive There's also the Porta Nigra in Trier, a Roman gatehouse that is extraordinarily well preserved.
@@Karlthegreat84 Yes, we love it. We can easily keep going with a series - there are so many more well preserved structures we'll share in the future.
Actually, it was part of the Archbishops's fortified residence during the Middle Ages, that's why it is still there. But one has to admit that it was completely remodeled inside and partially demolished for that purpose. Had it not been reconstructed in the 19th century, it would not look as impressive and complete and authentically roman today.
I guess Pompeii and Herculaneum are kinda like cheating... I went to Rome last year and saw most of the buildings there that feature in this video, but now I'm getting pangs of regret that I didn't get a chance to go to the baths of Diocletian. On the other side of the coin, I did get to visit the Domus Aurea- the vast palace built by Nero on public land he appropriated following the Great Fire. This was such an unpopular move that after he died it was buried in rubble and the Baths of Titus were built on top. Because of this, it was astonishingly well preserved, but is completely underground. Only part of it has been cleared out and only part of that is open to the public, but you can book a guided tour, and it's truly amazing. You can walk for what seems like hundreds of metres through its completely intact halls, all under the earth. Many of the rooms still have their original plaster and magnificent frescos
Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli and the ruins of Ostia (both near Rome) also have some impressively intact buildings.
Yes, a lot more for us to cover-- upcoming: Domus Aurea, Hadrian's Villa- and more! Thank you!
I have yet to get inside the Curia . But I have went to see the original Bronze doors from it. These are found at the Basilica St Giovanni Laterano. They are magnificent.
Great video.
Many thanks. Yes, you can get inside the Curia with the forum "super" ticket. Worth it! Happy to share the experience.
@@AncientRomeLive evening. Last time I was there it was closed. I will be back.
@@bullfrommull Hours/ days of opening are listed on ParcoColosseo website and coopculture.
Great vid, you could also mention the Maison Carrée in Nimes, France and the Pont du Gard not far away ;)
thanks you- yes in the future!
Great presentation!
Thank you kindly!
Awsome vid. great VO
Glad you enjoyed it! Do check our latest (today) on the games inside the Colosseum.
Nothing about NIMES region ??? the city is called the french Rome but ok...Nimes Arena, the square house, the Pont du Gard Aqueduct.
Yes, lots more to cover! Thank you for the suggestion. As not a comprehensive list, we'll certainly address the theme with more structures in the future... for the aqueduct of Nimes, please see our recent AQUEDUCT video that features it (into the specus) as well as that of Segovia.
Thank you very much for this very interesting video ! Very impressive…
thank you for your kind words. It means a lot to us!
Muchas gracias 😊 Saludos desde México
Thank you!
thanks for sharing : Aula Palatina it's near my home, this is the bewt well preserved basilic from Chistian roman period : made under emperor Constantin ! Porta nigra is also in Trier ! viva SPQR !!
Great. Thank you
You are welcome!
all very good! thank you
You are welcome!
Great infooooo
Teier has one of Europe's richest architectural histories alive today. From truly ancient Roman buildings, medieval era and postwar modernism. One of the greatest cities in the world for architecture AND food AND wine!
Love Trier!
Thank you!
The former capital of Lusitania, Augusta Emerita (nowadays Mérida) still has some magnificent Roman ruins, such as the theatre (still in use) , the circus, aqueducts, amphiteatrum ...and the aqueduct of Segovia is something to behold at least once in a lifetime, alongside the well preserved medieval historic centre.
The lighthouse of Brigantium (nowadays A Coruña) , the ancient ruins of Segóbriga, the aqueduct of Albarracín - Cella, Tarraco (nowadays Tarragona), Las Médulas (the greatest gold mine of the Empire)...Spain is filled with important and well-preserved Roman ruins, it truly was one of the most romanized territories .
Fantastic video. Monuments that came spontaneously to my mind are: the Roman baths in Bath/UK, the Roman bridge in Córdoba/Spain, and perhaps the amphitheater in Arles/France, although it is not quite as well preserved as the two other monuments.
Thank you so much for your kind words. Yes, more to come- we like to produce videos from what we actually film.. .and we have so much more to share and visit.
Yes of course, one can’t do everything in one go. The monuments you selected are an excellent mix of better and less known places, I learned a lot.
@@henrykaspar3634 thank you! yes, that was our whole rationale. Some of those sites you'd recognize, we had hoped. Other ones were off most people's lists. More to come!
The Rotunda in Thessaloniki, Greece, is also an ancient Roman building very well preserved, mainly because it was converted into the church of Saint George in the byzantine middle ages.
Yes, we need to cover it!
2:46 - I can confirm that this market feels like it has been built yesterday. In fact, it does not take too long for modern buildings to fall into ruin.
Was it used by the guild of millers? True roman bread 4 true romans
The Impirial hall in Trier is really cool. It's made with really long red bricks which look like they would have broken easily. It's a remarkable work .
Maison carré en Nîmes, Porta Praetoria in Aosta, Arena in Verona and Arles, Bulla Regia and Dugga in Tunisia, are all very well preserved pieces of roman architecture.
As well Regensburg in Germany features many good monuments.
There are offbeat places in Turkey that don't get a lot of visitors perhaps but have outstanding Roman buildings. Aphrodisias, for instance, has a wonderful stadium that is basically fully preserved. There are excellent Roman remnants throughout the Mediterranean if you travel around a bit.
You forgot to mention the theatre of Bosra in modern Syria. I visited it many times in my childhood. It is very well preserved and was still used for concerts until recently. However, it was hit during the recent war in Syria.
So amazing to think what it must of been like
there is some good stuff in Saintes, France (near bordeux, saintes was the capital of the region in roman times), the local amphitheatre is great also the arc of germanicus, plus some great churches like abbaye aux dammes, the local cathedral, etc...
You sound AND look like John Daub, of only in Japan CZcams channel. Great video by the way.
Wow, thanks! Don't know him. We will look up his content.
Good stuff! Pula didn’t make the list?
Como siempre un estupendo vídeo e información que agradecemos--. Pero, porqué no está Gerasa ?
We love the site Jerash … for building - we possibly could have added the Temple of Artemis … we will visit it again soon!!
The amphitheater of El Jem is very beautiful but the one that has the best preserved, practically intact underground and all the structures for raising and managing the animals is that of Pozzuoli, perhaps even larger than the Tunisian one.
Agia Sophia was built as an Greek Orthodox church and served as the imperial church until Turko-jihadis converted the church to a mosque. This is an important detail that was omitted.
In the tapestry of time, the Roman Empire unfurls like a phoenix soaring across the skies, its wings outstretched, casting a colossal shadow over the annals of history. A force of nature that breathed life into the ancient world, it rose from the ashes of its own genesis, fueled by the fiery passions of its architects.
The majesty of this ethereal titan is embodied in the very stones that make up its grand edifices;
The Colosseum, a monument to the titanic struggle for survival and glory, stands as the sun at the center of this celestial empire. Its radiant beams of light illuminate the tapestry of time, casting vibrant hues upon the annals of history. Within its hallowed walls, the echoes of a thousand triumphant roars and the clash of steel reverberate through the ages, an eternal symphony that heralds the indomitable spirit of Rome.
The Roman Forum, the bustling epicenter of politics, commerce, and culture, is a labyrinth of architectural marvels, where marble columns stretch towards the heavens like divine pillars. Here, the wisdom of Cicero and the stratagems of Caesar reverberate through the whispers of the wind, and the spirits of great statesmen and philosophers linger in these corridors, their astral forms intermingling with the cosmic dust of the ages.
The Pantheon, an architectural supernova, explodes with divine energy and the boundless wisdom of the cosmos. Its celestial dome, encrusted with the jewels of the heavens, captures the essence of eternity within its hallowed sanctuary. A cosmic gateway to the divine, its oculus peers into the unfathomable depths of the universe, unraveling the mysteries of the celestial bodies that dance across the firmament.
The aqueducts, the sinewy veins of the empire, stretch across the land like the arteries of a sleeping giant, carrying the lifeblood of civilization to the farthest corners of the known world. An eternal testament to the ingenuity of Rome, these stone serpents quench the thirst of the empire, irrigating the fertile fields that sustain her people and nourishing the dreams and ambitions of her countless denizens.
The Roman Empire, a blazing comet in the night sky, illuminates the dark corners of history with the brilliance of its achievements. Its grandeur and glory, etched into the annals of time, are immortalized in the hearts and minds of those who bear witness to its splendor. A symbol of human aspiration, the Empire represents the indomitable will to conquer the unknown, to forge a legacy that transcends the boundaries of time, and to etch our names in the stars.
France has among the best preserved Roman monument and not a single word about it… Vienne, Nîmes, pont du Gard, Orange, Saintes. In Lyon they found back a complete mosaic floor some years ago by building an elevator for a subway station. The walls of Carcassonne are build on a still visible Roman fondation. Cluny bath in Paris is astonishing and now incorporating in the medieval museum of the french capital. The Vaison la Romaine bridge was built by romans and its still in use for cars, without saying it survived multiple floods (the last time the water raise by 13meters
Great video and thanks for posting. . . but if the Coliseum makes it, I don't know how the arenas in Verona, Nimes and Arles are not on the list. Moreover, doesn't Maison Carree also deserve mention? Nevertheless, thanks for posting.
We are really being redundant at this point... the video is short and NOT comprehensive- we are just happy to share places we have seen and personally have filmed - in recent months. Lots more to share- and we certainly appreciate positive comments like yours ... more "best preserved buildings" videos will indeed appear on our channel...
Really amazing stuff highlighted here. Pity it didn't include Bath (Somerset) or Viroconium near Wroxeter often referred to locally as 'The Old Works'.
Thanks for the suggestions - for future videos!
@@AncientRomeLive The Roman bath in the city of Bath is extremely well preserved and is where the city gets its name from.
A really beautiful arch, but the one in Orange in France is even better!
In Austria 🇦🇹 in the city of Tulln there is still a tower from a Castell from the Roman period fully intact. Greetings from Linz Austria 🇦🇹 Europe!
Thank you!
You didn't include squared house in Nimes in south France ? Or even Arles arena.
You are missing several buildings from Hispania, the second most relevant region of the Empire! Nice video!
I was unaware of how much was saved as a result of conversion to Catholic Church use. I am also pleased to see how much has since been returned to preservational historical monument status open to all. Gratis.
Also in Trier is the Porta Negra, which IMO is a more fascinating structure. There are also Roman baths and a "mini" coliseum there. My old home town!
Yes, we are planning a separate video on the city!
GREAT1
About 200m from where I am currently sitting at home typing is one of the oldest buildings on the Isle of Wight (Southern England). The Church of St. Edmund was built in 1068 just after the Norman Conquest and is now over 950 years old. Strange to think that when it was being built many of these remarkable places had already stood for over 750 years or more.
Amazing!
All of this absolutely pales compared to Pompei, it´s like a time machine. Just absolutely mind-blowing.
We were just in Trier a few weeks ago and visited all the Roman places there.
Amazing city!
Great video. Thank you. I was expecting to see the marvelously well-preserved amphitheatre at Arles, France built in 90 A.D. where gladiator contests and chariot races were held in antiquity and the arena in Nimes, and the beautiful Pont du Gard aqueduct outside of Avignon France that is also extremely well-preserved, built in 19 B.C.
YES A LOT more for us to cover- rest assured- in future videos! thank you
Non sapevo di queste bellissime ed intatte vestigia lasciate da Diocleziano !!! Bellissime
Grazie!
Another well-preserved Roman fort from the first century is Gonio, near Batumi in the country of Georgia.
thank you!
I've been to El Djem. It's wonderful, and preserved by the climate. You can imagine lions and gladiators and Christians and the crowd; terrifying theatre. And don't miss the museum nearby housing the mosaic floors from 14 nearby excavated Roman suburban houses, plus a garden full of statues and amphorae and whatever. Well worth hiring a taxi for the day to go and see.
Yes, it's a wonderful site- as well as the museum and houses, in addition to the OTHER amphitheater!
I know of a Roman bridge over a river in the town of Vaison-la-Romaine in the south of France. This is not one of the major Roman monuments still standing, but I am amazed that it's been constantly used and still in use nowadays. I believe it's been restored and consolidated over time, but the fact is that its basic, original structure was so well designed that it's strong enough for having modern cars drive on it, almost 2000 years after its construction. Think of all the different people who've been using this bridge for close to two milleniums, from the days of the Roman Empire until today. Are we still able to build such lasting constructions?
You should also add the acueduct of Emerita Augusta in Mérida, Spain. A true Roman Capital city very well preserved.
We cove it in our aqueduct video... this video focuses on BUILDINGS
Impressive video, thank you!
What do you think about rebuiding ancient sites when the original materials and elements are preserved, either in situ or located in later buildings, reused?
The castrum of Qasr Bshr is an easy answer, in my opinion its should be restored. But what about historical sites like Christian churches that reused Roman materials, should they be dismanteled to restore the original buildings?
I know it's barely related but I have a doubt that's going around in my head, what the hell happened to the original pavement forum in Pompeii? I can't find an answer anywhere, if it was covered in ash, was it later stolen, why the pavement? why are there still some pieces remaining?
Thank you for your comments. Accurate rebuilding / restoration is very costly, to be conducted after a thorough study and evaluation of the materials. Original pieces are the core, with missing elements. made in other materials, for distinction. The castrum is, admittedly, in a very remote location, with few visitors. The road to the site isn't paved. These are also important factors that would influence such a project. We'd personally love it, but with limited resources available (worldwide) there are probably other options (more accessible and frequently) that would get the money first in Jordan.
The castrum is tricky- as it's isolated off the beaten path... and there are so many other amazing sites that no one will get to (thereby making them tourist destinations...)
No, no one dismantles those kinds of churches...
Pavement in Pompeii- as well as the statues that once adorned the many statue bases still on location? At later times people did indeed go back and rob out statuary and building material..
super
thank you!