I get to study the history of Roman architecture throughout the Roman Empire taught by one of the best professors on the subject for the next 4 months. And it's free!!!!!! Unless I decide I want a certificate stating that I took the course then it's $49. But, I really don't want the certificate as this isn't a course you can CLEP out of in an accredited university setting.
The majority of the time I spent in Europe was in Italy. Rome is an amazing city and the architecture is simply stunning. That certain buildings have stood for thousands of years is simply a marvel. The first thing I ever put on my Life List was to sit on Hadrian's Wall where the Roman Empire marked the line between civilization and barbarity. They designed some of the most amazing engineering feats that are still in operation today. The first flush toiling system was established in Rome.
Dr. Diana E. E. Kleiner has an entire series of lectures on YouTube for this course. The lectures are between 45 and 80 minutes long but you will get a great overall sense of what an art history course is truly like. Although 80 minutes seems like a short class to me as most of my lecture courses were 2-3 hours sitting in a darkened room viewing and discussing the slides representing the style, history, and cultural significance of a particular time period. Her lectures are worth watching simply because the face of higher education is changing. Dr. Kleiner was the founder of the Yale University Open Course system and those of us who have taken advantage of this program are eternally grateful.
"Roman Architecture with Diana E. E. Kleiner"
This is the syllabus from the Coursera website. You could take the course with me should you feel so inclined.
Course Syllabus
Week 1
- It Takes a City: The Founding of Rome and the Beginnings of Urbanism in Italy
Week 2
- Technology and Revolution in Roman Architecture
- Civic Life Interrupted; Nightmare and Destiny on August 24, A.D. 79
- Writing Assignment 1: Does New Technology Lead to Revolution or Revolution to New Technology? (250 words)
Week 3
- Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous: Houses and Villas at Pompeii
- Habitats at Herculaneum and Early Roman Interior Decoration
- Writing Assignment 1: Peer-Review Grading
Week 4
- Gilding the Lily: Painting Palaces and Villas in the First Century A.D.
- Exploring Special Subjects on Pompeian Walls
Week 5
- From Brick to Marble: Augustus Assembles Rome
- Accessing Afterlife: Tombs of Roman Aristocrats, Freedmen, and Slaves
- Writing Assignment 2: Should Rome be an Artifact or a Living City? (250 words)
Week 6
- Notorious Nero and His Amazing Architectural Legacy
- The Creation of an Icon: The Colosseum and Contemporary Architecture in Rome
- Writing Assignment 2: Peer-Review Grading
Week 7
- The Prince and the Palace: Human Made Divine on the Palatine Hill
- Mastery Quiz 1
Week 8
- Designing a Roman City Lecture and Project Assignment
- The Mother of All Forums: Civic Architecture in Rome under Trajan
Week 9
- Design Your Own Roman City Project
- Come up with the concept and do the research
Week 10
- Design Your Own Roman City Project
- Write the 500-word paper describing the city and the reason for its construction and complete the by-hand or computer-generated drawings of the city’s plan and at least one of its buildings. Submit paper by Sunday, March 23 and post images of the drawings to the designated location on Instagram and Facebook
Week 11
- Rome and a Villa: Hadrian’s Pantheon and Tivoli Retreat
- The Roman Way of Life and Death at Ostia, the Port of Rome
- Design Your Own Roman City Project Writing Assignment: Peer-Review Grading and Vote for Top Ten Projects by Liking Them on Facebook
Week 12
- Bigger is Better: The Baths of Caracalla and Other Second- and Third-Century Buildings in Rome
- Hometown Boy: Honoring an Emperor’s Roots in Roman North Africa
- Writing Assignment 3: Did Apollodorus of Damascus Design the Pantheon?
Week 13
- Baroque Extravaganzas: Rock Tombs, Fountains, and Sanctuaries in Jordan, Lebanon, and Libya
- Roman Wine in Greek Bottles: The Rebirth of Athens
- Writing Assignment 3: Peer-Review Grading
Week 14
- Making Mini Romes on the Western Frontier
- Rome Redux: The Tetrarchic Renaissance
Week 15
- Rome of Constantine and a New Rome
- Mastery Quiz 2
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