[SunkenCiv]

The rest of the Roman Concrete keyword, sorted:

• Why was Roman Concrete Forgotten during the Middle Ages? [11/14/2021]
• Sinkhole opens near the Pantheon, revealing 2,000-year-old Roman paving stones [05/13/2020]
• Science reveals improvements in Roman building techniques [10/30/2019]
• Paleomagnetism Study Supports Pyramid Man-Made Stone [02/19/2018]
• Finding a new formula for concrete [05/28/2016]
• Back to future with Roman architectural concrete [12/19/2014]
• To improve today's concrete, do as the Romans did [06/05/2013]
• The Riddle of Ancient Roman Concrete [09/02/2011]
• Volcanic ash may have preserved Roman ruins (Good cement) [05/14/2009]
• Researcher investigates ancient geology to understand human development, climate change [10/11/2008]
• Ancient Rome's Earliest Temple Reconstructed [03/15/2008]
• 'Caesar's superglue' find [12/04/2007]
• Research team recreates ancient underwater concrete technology [04/09/2005]

[Hootowl99]

Next…

I'd like to see supercharged lime clasts that can eliminate driveway cracking caused by poor base preparation before laying down the concrete slab.

[Right_Wing_Madman]

The two most astonishing mad-made objects I've seen with my eyes are the Great Pyramid in Egypt and the Pantheon in Rome. The Pantheon is the most solid, most impressive architectural structure I've seen and when inside the building, it feels like its 2,000 years old. There's nothing else like it. It's hard to describe.

[mairdie]

You put up the BEST articles!

[Adder]

Oh wow.
The saying is “Concrete always cracks” and that is certainly true of modern concrete...you just try to control where and how much it cracks.

But then I looks at that magnificent dome sitting there for 2.000 years with nary a crack or spall and its amazing.

The Pantheon is just a marvel. An amazing building.

[Roccus]

FTA

Initially, it was thought these were present as a result of sloppy mixing practices, or using poor-quality raw materials

Reminded me of some of the things Thor Heyerdahl found out about the genius of ancient naval architects in his construction of Ra

[wgmalabama]

Good post. Thanks for posting all these types of articles.

[moovova]

Not bad...considering the Pantheon has a huge hole in its roof.

[blam]

I read an article about a very durable Roman concrete that was 'special' because it contained ash only from a certain volcano.

Roman Concrete: Volcanic Material Created An Empire

[Paal Gulli]

As brilliant a piece of engineering as it is, it still bears proof to the old axiom, "The best laid plans of mice and men, oft go astray." Something you might never have noticed if you've only seen it from ground level.

See the "chevron" on the wall above the roof of the portico (indicated by arrows)? That's where the designer intended the portico's roof to have come to.

So why doesn't it? Nobody knows. But the columns are mismatched, too, different diameters, different styles, and made from stone from different quarries. Which gives rise to speculation that the original columns never arrived so the builders had to make do with whatever they could scrounge. They were supposed to have been quarried in Egypt, and the majority of the shipping route to Rome would have been over water, and shipwrecks were a common occurrence. Maybe pirates. Maybe Egyptian bureaucracy, who knows?

[Paal Gulli]

And in case you were wondering, the answer is, “Yes.”

When it rains, the floor inside the Pantheon gets wet. The “oculus” is just like any other hole in a roof, only bigger.

[GOPJ]

ping