Why Ancient Rome is Buried

The short answer is: dust, dead plants, and debris.

If you enjoyed this video, you might be interested in my book “Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants: Frequently Asked Questions about the Ancient Greeks and Romans."

If you're so inclined, you can follow me elsewhere online:

Thanks for watching!

[StekliCujo]

They say that Rome wasn`t buried in a day.

[italiangarbageposting]

Italians: trying to build a road or a new house

Ancient roman ruin below: No

[Rasfa]

EVERY VIDEO ON YOUTUBE SHOULD START WITH THE SHORT ANSWER. You got a well deserved like, sir.

[dallastexan]

Well done. I spent a college semester in Rome in the 70's, and we lived in the hotel that faces the n/e corner of the Pantheon. The Pantheon went through a great cleaning and general digging around the foundation then, into the 1980's. They found a great amount of things below street level around the base of the Pantheon. It was wonderful drinking $1 wine and watching them bring items up from below street level. Ah, the good ole days. We're headed back for our last trip this fall after COVID...to celebrate 50 years of travel to Rome.

[keighlancoe]

There are entire cities buried under the sand in Egypt. I watched a documentary a few years ago and they used satellite thermal imaging over much of the Eqyptian desert and scanned it. They found hundreds of cities, and the ancient capital of Tanis, completely buried under mountains of sand dunes. Its amazing to think how much stuff must be buried under all that sand waiting to be discovered.

[fpsdovah]

Can you just imagine a time lapse from it being built to today?! That’s what makes history so amaze

[paulnienhaus]

I live near Detroit and have seen the old Packard plant. Your analogy is spot on.

[sirrathersplendid]

You forgot one of the key mechanisms, erosion. Hills and mountains gradually get worn away, and the soil is transported to lower lying areas by wind and rain. This “levelling out” occurs quickly on farmland with higher areas being flattened by the plough, an effect visible within a single lifetime.

[wilfridwibblesworth]

Dust, dead plants, and debris - Sounds like my Gran's living room. She's been wondering why the door won't open properly lately too but this explains why.

[antonkutuzov]

I must say you are a legend for giving “the short answer” literally the very first thing, even before voicing the question. Honestly, thank you! This is 100% anti-clickbait

[Misses-Hippy]

I live in what was a Greek, and later Roman village.
It is very windy and we get much dust from the Sahara.
Last year, about 100 feet from my house, archeologists
dug up 2 Roman stone caskets that were surprisingly
deep - about 20 feet!
Also, this village was burned to the ground 3 times. There are
12th century scorched roof tiles just below the surface of our
barn floor. Parts of the barn brickwork date to the 11th century.

[ExAnimoPortugal]

As I was walking through Rome last year, looking at the ruins in a lower ground level, I couldn't help imagine what else is lying and waiting underneath the road or a building

[valentinozangobbo]

Also, Rome was built in between the famous ancient "7 hills" and centuries of dust and debris were washed away from these mounds down in the streets. Centuries of neglected behaviour of post-imperial inhabitants did the rest

[thesaltycabbage]

People underestimate how quickly things pile up when no one is maintaining it, my current house was empty for 4 years and the entire rear garden was covered in around 5cm of soil and plant debris.

[robertlimestone]

Also, hot sirocco winds blowing north from Africa, from the Sahara, are extremely dry and dusty. A layer of fine dust can settle on Roman tables and chairs in just a few minutes if the winds are blowing. That dust can add up in a day, let alone a 1500 years. In just 100 years a Roman paved street would be transformed to a muddy path.

[FantadiRienzo]

Shortest answer: because at some points, the romans just stopped cleaning their streets

[mightymissk]

I love this! I've always wondered why so many historical ruins are buried, or partially buried underground. I'm a history junkie and your channel is a wonderful resource.

[kirkmooneyham]

Another thing people forget is that ancient builders often didn't excavate DOWN before they built to create a solid foundation. They just leveled the ground, maybe compacted the soil a bit, and then they built. The entirety of many heavy stone buildings have just slowly sank into the soil over the centuries. I watched a new airfield being built in a desert. The sand there was more like a fine dust and if concrete was poured in slabs over it, they would have cracked under the weight of the aircraft, or perhaps even just under the weight of the concrete itself. The construction team dug way down, quite a few feet, hauled out all the regular fine dust sand, and then brought in special construction sand that compacts and stays very stable. Then they actually set up all the rebar and molds, and poured the concrete. It took them about a year to do it all, and it was fine work that held up well.

[francesconicoletti]

Rome was originally built on a swamp. It took massive drainage works to drain out places like the forum & the colosseum. Once those drains weren’t maintained, natural processes would return .

[ChimkenNuggers]

It's amazing how entire landscapes in general change in such a short period of time.