Water culture in Roman society
By: Dylan Kelby Rogers
Series: Ancient history -- [v.1]; Ancient history -- v. 1.
Publisher: Brill
Published: 2018
Place of publication: Leiden
Language: eng
Number of pages: 118
ISBN-13: 9789004368941
Subjects: Water-supply; History; Water; Water use; Sanitation; Social life and customs; Manners and customs; Social aspects
Description: Water played an important part of ancient Roman life, from providing necessary drinking water, supplying bath complexes, to flowing in large-scale public fountains. The Roman culture of water was seen throughout the Roman Empire, although it was certainly not monolithic and it could come in a variety of scales and forms, based on climatic and social conditions of different areas. This article seeks to define "water culture" in Roman society by examining literary, epigraphic, and archaeological evidence, while understanding modern trends in scholarship related to the study of Roman water. The culture of water can be demonstrated through expressions of power, aesthetics, and spectacle. Further there was a shared experience of water in the empire that could be expressed through religion, landscape, and water's role in cultures of consumption and pleasure.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 87-118).