Basilica Ulpia Project | History of Architecture | ARCH 3115, Study Guides, Projects, Research of History of Architecture

Download Basilica Ulpia Project | History of Architecture | ARCH 3115 and more Study Guides, Projects, Research History of Architecture in PDF only on Docsity! Name: Basilica Ulpia Meaning: Named after Roman emperor Trajan whose full name was Marcus Ulpius Traianus. Location: Tajan, Rome Key Dates: 98 – 112 CE Architect: Apollodoros of Damascus Function: Unlike later Christian basilicas, it had no known religious function; it was dedicated to the administration of justice, commerce and the presence of the emperor. Key Dimensions: 117 by 55 meters (385 x 182 ft) with a 50 meter (164 ft) high roof Materials: Stone, Marble Important Features: Later, it was used as the architectural prototype by Constantine as the basis for the layout of the new Christian churches. Structural System: Composed of a great central nave with four aisles divided by rows of columns and apses at the ends. The columns and the walls were of precious marbles. Unlike previous imperial fora, in which a temple was placed frontally in the square, the Basilica Ulpia was set transversely to the axis of the forum and enclosed by two ambulatory colonnades. At either end of the basilica were two semicircular apses (which had the same diameter as the hemicycles off the colonnades) and, at the center of the façade, a tetrastyle (four-column) porch. Symbolism: It was meant to impress visitors and to convince them of the glory and the might of the Roman empire and its emperor.