“They Thought Soap Was Gross”: 30 Lesser Known Facts About The Roman Empire

It is said that Rome wasn't built in a day... And if you've ever delved into Roman history, you might understand why.

According to the Franklin Templeton knowledge centre, it was an English playwright called John Heywood who first said that “Rome wasn’t built in a day, but they were laying bricks every hour.” The site explains that in the beginning, Rome was just a conglomeration of few hamlets. It then it became a city state (a sovereign state that consists of a city and its dependent territories), and eventually a vast empire.

"The grandeur that Rome achieved was a result of centuries of tireless effort and ceaseless energy devoted by her people. In picturing the empire that they eventually wanted, Romans did not forget that they will have to tirelessly lay each brick continuously over decades together," reads the site.

The Ancient Romans contributed a lot to society, and thousands of years later, their influence is still visible. It's in our art, architecture, technology, literature, language, and law. We

If there's one thing the Romans were good at it was engineering. "They understood the laws of physics well enough to develop aqueducts and better ways to aid water flow. They harnessed water as energy for powering mines and mills," explains National Geographic. "They also built an expansive road network, a great achievement at the time. Their roads were built by laying gravel and then paving with rock slabs."

The Romans built such a massive road system that until today, we say that “all roads lead to Rome.”

The Romans were also great farmers. They managed to figure out the climate, soil, and did deep-dives into how to make their plants prosper. Today, some of the ancient Roman techniques are still used by farmers around the world. We're talking things like crop rotation, pruning, grafting, seed selection, and manuring.

You don't have to be a history buff to have heard of the Colosseum. The ancient Romans built the large amphitheater somewhere between 70 and 72 CE. And today, it's one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, it's the largest amphitheater in the world, measuring 189m long, 156m wide and 50m high.

Again, we see influences of the Roman Empire in our world today. Think about the sports stadiums that host major matches... That oval shape and the tiered seating are based on the structures the Romans built back in the day.

What's truly remarkable is that the Colosseum still stands today, thousands of years later. It's arches are made out of cement. The ancient Romans made the super strong building material with what was available around them: volcanic ash and volcanic rock. And its for this reason modern scientists believe the Colosseum hasn't crumbled.

"Roman underwater structures proved to be even sturdier," reports National Geographic. "Seawater reacting with the volcanic ash created crystals that filled in the cracks in the concrete. To make a concrete this durable, modern builders must reinforce it with steel. So today, scientists study Roman concrete, hoping to match the success of the ancient master builders."