Roman Building: Materials and Techniques

This new English edition of Roman Building makes available the most up-to-date revision of the text to a new generation of English scholars of Roman architecture and technology.

Covering every aspect of Roman building techniques from surveying and preparing the materials to decorating and heating the finished structures, this volume offers the most comprehensive discussion of the subject. Placing emphasis on the technical aspects of the subject, it follows the process of building through each stage - from quarry to standing wall, from tree to roof timbers - and how these materials were obtained or manufactured. Besides construction, masonry, carpentry and interiors, this book examines domestic and commercial architecture in shops, baths and workshops, as well as civil engineering projects such as aqueducts and roads.

Illustrated with over 750 photographs, maps and drawings, Roman Building remains the seminal reference work for Roman architectural technology for students and scholars alike.

Jean-Pierre Adam, architect and archaeologist, was head of the Paris office of the Institute for Research on Ancient Architecture (CNRS) from 1972 to 2022.