Roman Surveying Instruments

1928

Storage DQA S

Seattle: University of Washington Press

The ancient Romans were not only a practical and pragmatic people but they were also incredibly efficient engineers and planners. Their talents for skill and accuracy in construction is evident in the monuments that still exist today. By 200 AD the Romans had built more than 80,000 kilometres of roads throughout their vast empire. Constructed of three or four layers of stone and clay with side channels for drainage, Roman roads were built strong and straight for the efficient transport of armies, trade and civilians. The roads were built by slaves and were well maintained at the state’s expense with officials dedicated to their upkeep. A Roman road surveyor may have used an hodometer or ‘road-measurer’. Described by Vitruvius (d. c. 15 BC) this machine has wheels of a prescribed diameter which turn a series of toothed cogs that cause a marble to drop into a container for every (Roman) mile travelled.