Servian Wall

Welcome, history enthusiasts, to a monument that predates emperors, marble palaces, and the Colosseum. Before us lie the imposing, rugged remains of the Servian Wall. …

To understand why the Romans undertook the monumental task of enciriling their entire city with massive stone blocks, we must look back to a profoundly traumatic event in their early history. In the year three hundred and ninety…

You might naturally wonder why a wall built in the fourth century BC during the Roman Republic is named after Servius Tullius, the legendary sixth King of Rome who ruled more than a century earlier. Roman history is frequently a…

Examine the material of the wall itself. Notice that it is not the bright white marble of the later empire, nor is it the baked red brick of the Aurelian walls. …

While the towering stone blocks are impressive, they were originally only one component of a much larger, complex defensive system. In the most vulnerable, flat sections of the city's perimeter—specifically the northeastern…

The Servian Wall was a spectacular success. It deterred invaders for centuries. …

To truly appreciate the Servian Wall, we must briefly compare it to its younger, larger sibling, the Aurelian Walls. As we established, the Servian Wall was built of dark tuff stone during a period of Republican growth and…

As we conclude our examination of the Servian Wall, take a final moment to appreciate the sheer endurance of these ancient, silent stones. They have survived the sack of the Gauls, the explosive growth of the Empire, the fall of…