NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.

What led to the Roman Golden Age, Pax Romana? How did
Objective: Pax Romana impact Rome, other regions, and later periods
in history?
Contextualize Pax Romana.
Explain the impact of Pax Romana on Rome, other regions, and later periods in
history.

Introduction
➡ Directions: Examine the images below and complete the accompanying activity.

The images below are of three modern structures that are descendants of innovations from Rome’s Golden Age.
Structure A
Structure B

New Era Stadium, where the Buffalo Bills American football team
plays.

The New York State Thruway is a road that extends from New York City
in the southeast, north to Albany, and west to Buffalo and beyond to
Pennsylvania.

Structure C Civil War.

The Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Arch at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, NY is

a memorial to those who died fighting for the Union in the American
 B
NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6
1. Identify the purpose for each of the structures shown
C

2. Based on the structures shown, predict what innovations

the Romans might have produced based on these modern-
day versions.
 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6
Contextualize Pax Romana, the Golden Age of Rome
➡ Directions: Examine the timeline, text, and images below, then answer the questions below.

Contextualize

The assassination of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator, in 44 BC led

to two decades of civil war as rival leaders tried to take control of
Rome. Eventually, Caesar’s great nephew, Augustus, defeated his
rivals and united Roman-controlled lands as the Roman Empire. He
expanded Rome’s borders to cover most of Europe and the areas of
Asia and North Africa surrounding the Mediterranean Sea.
Augustus’ rule (27 BCE- 14 CE) started a two-hundred year long
Golden Age known as Pax Romana. Pax Romana means “Roman
Peace” in Latin and is used to identify the years 27 BCE- 180 CE
Statue of Augustus, 1st Century CE.
during which there were fewer wars than in any other period in
Rome’s history.

The empire strengthened its

central government,
consolidated its power, and
created a stable condition in
which trade and communication
flourished. The empire protected
and governed individual
provinces, permitting each to
make and administer its own laws
while accepting Roman taxation
and military control. Through
state sponsorship, Romans made
great achievements in
architecture, engineering, and
the arts.

The Roman Empire at its height, during Pax Romana.

 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6
1. Who united Rome after the death of Julius Caesar?

2. What does Pax Romana mean in Latin?

3. Why is Pax Romana considered a golden age?

 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6
The Golden Age of Rome

Exhibit A: Roman Arches and Domes

Roman architecture continued the legacy left by the earlier architects of the Greek world. For example, the Romans used
Greek column styles and built their grandest projects from marble. However, the Romans were also great innovators
and they quickly adopted new construction techniques, used new materials, and uniquely combined existing
techniques with creative design to produce a whole range of new architectural structures such as the dome and the
arch. Many of these innovations were a response to the changing practical needs of Roman society, and these projects
were all backed by the government which funded, organized, and spread them around the Roman world,
guaranteeing their permanence so that many of these great edifices survive to the present day.
The Arch The Pantheon

The Segovia Aqueduct in modern-day Spain is a

well-preserved example of how Roman engineers used arches
to span long distances and support a great amount of
weight on a structure.

The Pantheon is the best preserved building from ancient

Rome and was completed in c. 125 CE. Its magnificent
dome is a lasting testimony to the genius of Roman
architects and as the building stands virtually intact it offers
a unique opportunity to step back 2,000 years and
experience the glory that was Rome.
 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6

Exhibit B: Roman Aqueducts

Watch an excerpt of History Channel's Mankind: The Story of All of Us about the Roman Aqueducts, read the
text, and examine the image below.

These sometimes massive structures, with single, double, or triple tiers of arches, were designed to carry fresh water
to urban centers from sources sometimes many kilometers away. The earliest in Rome was the Aqua Appia (312 BCE),
but the most impressive example is undoubtedly the Pont du Gard near Nimes (c. 14 CE). Romans used the arch to
span rivers and ravines.
 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6

Exhibit C: The Colosseum

Watch Deconstructing the Colosseum and Rick Steve's Europe about the Colosseum, read the text, and
examine the image below.

Roman theatres and amphitheaters were

inspired by the Greek versions. The Romans
added a highly decorative stage building
(scaenae frons) which incorporated different
levels of columns, projections, pediments,
and statues. Theatres also display the Roman
passion for enclosing spaces, especially as
they were often (partially or completely)
roofed in wood or employed canvas awnings.

The fully enclosed amphitheatre was a

particular favorite of the Romans. The
Colosseum is the largest and most famous,
and it is a typical example copied throughout
the empire: a highly decorative exterior,
seats set over a network of barrel vaults, and
underground rooms below the arena floor to hide people, animals and props until they were needed in the spectacles.
Source: “Roman Architecture.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. [Link]

Exhibit D: Roman Roads

Watch Ancient Roman Superhighway and an excerpt of Mankind: The Story of All of Us about Roman roads
and examine the images below.

A street in Pompeii. Map of major Roman roads in modern-day

Spain and Portugal.
 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6

Exhibit E: Roman Sculpture

Roman sculpture, with artists from across a huge empire and changing public tastes over centuries, is above all else,
remarkable for its sheer variety and eclectic mix. The art form blended the idealized perfection of earlier Classical
Greek sculpture with a greater aspiration for realism and absorbed artistic preferences and styles from the East to
create images in stone and bronze which rank among the finest works from antiquity [the Classical Era]. Aside from
their own unique contribution, Roman sculptors have also, with their popular copies of earlier Greek masterpieces,
preserved invaluable works for the future which would have otherwise been completely lost to world art.
Source: “Roman Sculpture.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. [Link]

The Dying Gaul, sculpted from marble, is one of the

best-known and most important works from Rome. The
image above is a replica of one of the sculptures
created
to commemorate the victories over the Galatians in the Bronze statue of Roman Emperor, Marcus
Aurelius, 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE. erected ca. 175 CE.
 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6

Exhibit F: Roman Mosaics

Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials.
Mosaics have been found in Roman dwellings from Britain to Dura-Europos. Splendid mosaic floors are found in Roman villas
across north Africa, in places such as Carthage, and can still be seen in the extensive collection in Bardo Museum in Tunis, Tunisia.
The most famous mosaics of the Roman world were created in Africa and in Syria, the two richest provinces of the Roman Empire.
Many Roman mosaics are found in Tunisian museums, most of which date from the second to the seventh century CE.
Source: “Mosaic.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. [Link]

A section of the Alexander Mosaic, a much larger Roman work depicting a battle involving the Greek general
Alexander the Great created in Pompeii around 100 BCE.
 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6

Exhibit G: Literature
The two most well known Roman authors were Virgil and Cicero.
Their works, though completed before Pax Romana, were widely read
during the golden age.

Virgil (70 BCE- 19 BCE) was regarded by the Romans as their greatest poet,
an estimation that subsequent generations have upheld. His fame rests
chiefly upon the Aeneid, which tells the story of Rome’s legendary
founder and proclaims the Roman mission to civilize the world under
divine guidance. His reputation as a poet endures not only for the music
and diction of his verse and for his skill in constructing an intricate work
on the grand scale, but also because he embodied in his poetry aspects of
experience and behavior that transcend history.

Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 BCE- 43 BCE) was a Roman statesman, lawyer,
scholar, and writer who vainly tried to uphold republican principles in the
final civil wars that destroyed the Roman Republic. His writings include
books of rhetoric, speeches, philosophical and political treatises, and
letters.

Exhibit H: Roman Medicine

Roman medicine was greatly influenced by earlier Greek medical practice and
literature but also made its own unique contribution to the history of
medicine through the work of such famous experts like Galen. Whilst there
were professional doctors attached to the Roman army, for the rest of the
population medicine remained a private affair. Nevertheless, many large
Roman households had their own medical specialist amongst their staff and
with the spread of literature on the topic, access to medical knowledge
became ever wider, treatments became more well known, and surgery
became more sophisticated.

Galen (131-201) was a physician who learned about anatomy through the
dissection of apes and pigs, clinical observation, and thorough examination of
patient and symptoms. Galen was forbidden by Roman law to dissect human
corpses, so his knowledge was limited to what he could learn from other
animals and outward examinations of the bodies of dead gladiators and
hanged criminals.

‘Muscles Man', A drawing based on Galen’s

books about anatomy but drawn by someone
NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6
else.
 NAME ____________________________________ _____/75 #5.6

FA
SQ 23: What led to the Roman Golden Age, Pax Romana? How did
Pax Romana impact Rome, other regions, and later periods in
history?

➡ Directions: Based on what you have learned about the Pax Romana, complete the prompts below.
FA 1. Contextualize Pax Romana by completing the following tasks:
● Identify when and where the golden age took place
● Describe the factors that led to the golden age

Contextualize

FA 2. Explain the impact of Pax Romana on Rome, other regions, and later periods in history
by completing the following tasks:
● Identify two innovations developed during the golden age
Connect ● Describe the effects of those innovations on Rome, other regions and/or later periods
Cause and in history
Effect