Apollodorus of Damascus

2nd century Syrian Roman architect and engineer

Apollodorus of Damascus

Apollodorus of Damascus, bust from 130/140 AD in the Glyptothek

Born|

Damascus, Roman Syria, Roman Empire

Occupation| Architect
Buildings| Basilica Ulpia, Trajan's Forum, Temple of Trajan, The Pantheon

Apollodorus of Damascus (Ancient Greek: Ἀπολλόδωρος ὁ Δαμασκηνός)[1] was an architect and engineer from Roman Syria, who flourished during the 2nd century AD.[2][3][4] As an engineer he authored several technical treatises, and his massive architectural output gained him immense popularity during his time.[5] He is one of the few architects whose name survives from antiquity, and is credited with introducing several Eastern innovations to the Roman Imperial style, such as making the dome a standard. He is also known as Apollodorus Mechanicus.

## Early life

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Apollodorus was born in Damascus, Roman Syria. Modern sources refer to him as Nabatean,[3][6][7] or as Greek.[8][9][10] Neither Cassius Dio nor Procopius, scholars and historians of antiquity, mention his origins when writing of him.[11][12] Little is known of his early life, but he started his career as a military engineer[13][page needed] before meeting future emperor Trajan in Damascus, then being summoned to Rome by him when he was a consul in 91 AD, after his twentieth birthday,[14]: 35 and later accompanying him during the Second Dacian War in 105 AD.[15]

## Works and style

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Apollodorus was Trajan's favoured architect and engineer.

In Rome he designed and oversaw the construction of:

* Trajan's Forum and Markets
* Temple of Trajan
* Trajan's Column (the first monument of its kind)

Outside the capital, Apollodorus designed the:

* Trajan's Bridge across the Danube
* Alconétar Bridge over the Tagus in Spain
* triumphal arch of Trajan at Benevento
* Arch of Trajan at Ancona.[16]
* Trajan's Trophy near Adamclisi, Romania

He is the author of Siege Engines (Πολιορκητικά), dedicated to an unnamed emperor, likely Trajan.[16]

The monumental Danube Bridge of Apollodorus. Apollodorus himself stands in the foreground behind the sacrificing emperor.[14]: 55

The director of the Italian Institute of Culture [it] in Damascus, Fiorella Festa Farina, described the technical prowess of Apollodorus as stemming from his cultural roots and the architectural tradition of Syria; and that he owed his particular mastery to Nabataean culture filtered through Greek modes of thought.[17][18] He was known for his practical and robust designs. It was likely due to his influence that domes became a standard element in Roman architecture.[19]

## Death

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Cassius Dio reports that Apollodorus offended Hadrian by dismissing and ridiculing the emperor's forays into architecture, which led to his banishment and death.[20] While some, considering this episode as consistent with Hadrian's documented acts of anger and violence, do believe the execution occurred,[citation needed] many modern historians cast doubt on this event. According to the historian Jona Lendering, modern scholarship views the anecdote as unlikely to have occurred, due to Hadrian's preoccupation with far greater threats to his power early in his reign, and that the criticism Apollodorus proffered was acted upon.[12]: para. 2

## See also

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* Trajan's Market
* Trajan's Column
* Temple of Trajan
* Trajan's Bridge
* Trajan's Forum
* Pantheon, Rome

## Notes

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1. ^ Procopius of Caesarea, Προκόπιου Καισαρέως Περὶ Κτισμάτων [Procopius Caesareus About buildings] (in Ancient Greek) - via ΛακουσΚούρτιος [LakousKourtios]
2. ^ George Sarton (1936), "The Unity and Diversity of the Mediterranean World", Osiris. 2: 406-463 [430]
3. ^ a b Fakouch, Tammam (2003). "Foreword (2)". In Giuliana Calcani (ed.). Apollodorus of Damascus and Trajan's Column: From Tradition to Project. Rome: L'Erma di Bretschneider. pp. 11–12\. ISBN 978-8-8826-5233-3. OCLC 57075431. p. 11: "... the brilliant architect Apollodorus of Damascus. This famous Syrian personage ..." ISBN 88-8265-233-5
4. ^ Hong-Sen Yan, Marco Ceccarelli (2009), International Symposium on History of Machines and Mechanisms: Proceedings of HMM 2008, Springer, p. 86, ISBN 978-1-4020-9484-2, "He had Syrian origins coming from Damascus"
5. ^ "Apollodorus of Damascus". Oxford Reference.
6. ^ Masi, F.; Stefanou, I.; Vannucci, P. (1 October 2018). "On the origin of the cracks in the dome of the Pantheon in Rome" (PDF). Engineering Failure Analysis. 92: 587–596\. doi:10.1016/j.engfailanal.2018.06.013. ISSN 1350-6307. S2CID 55614581.
7. ^ Forty, Simon; Forty, Jonathan (14 January 2022). Limits of Empire: Rome's Borders. Casemate. ISBN 978-1-63624-077-0.
8. ^ "Apollodorus of Damascus". Britannica.
9. ^ Palmer, Allison Lee (26 May 2016). Historical Dictionary of Architecture. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4422-6309-3.
10. ^ Delaine, Janet (2023). "Architects and Roman Society §The Origins of Architects". Roman Architecture. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 28–32\. ISBN 978-0-19-269999-2.
11. ^ Procopio (1828) [6th century], "Libro quarto – Capo VI: Giustiniano fortifica la riva del Danubio dalla città di Viminacio sino in Tracia" [Book Four, ch. 6: Justinian fortifies the bank of the Danube from the city of Viminacium to Thrace], Degli edifizii dell'Imperadore Giustiniano [Of the buildings of the Emperor Justinian (or, The Buildings)] (in Italian), vol. VII of Opere di Procopio di Cesarea, translated by Giuseppe Compagnoni, Milano: Sonzogno, pp. 429–433, Traduzione dal greco - via it.Wikisource
12. ^ a b Lendering, Jona (20 May 2020). "Apollodorus of Damascus". Livius. "Most scholars believe that it is not true that Hadrian ordered the assassination of the architect. [...] There is ... serious reason to doubt the anecdote about Hadrian murdering Apollodorus, and its origin may have been that the architect died - of natural causes - at the beginning of Hadrian's reign, when several senators were executed." Citing the primary sources:
* Cassius Dio: Roman History 69.4; and
* Procopius' The Buildings IV 6.11–14
13. ^ Campbell, J. Brian (2004). Greek and Roman Military Writers: Selected readings. London; New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-28547-6. OCLC 54356411.
14. ^ a b Calcani, Giulia (2003). "Apollodorus and the column of Trajan at Damascus". In Giuliana Calcani (ed.). Apollodorus of Damascus and Trajan's Column: From Tradition to Project. L'Erma di Bretschneider. pp. 35–64\. ISBN 978-8-8826-5233-3. OCLC 57075431.
15. ^ Nath, Priyanka; Dutta, Suneha; Jindal, Tina, eds. (2012). "Building the Ancient World: Apollodorus of Damascus". Engineers From the Great Pyramids to the Pioneers of Space Travel. Editor-in-chief: Adam Hart-Davis. Dorling Kindersley. pp. 24–25.
16. ^ a b Chisholm 1911.
17. ^ Abdulkarim, Maamoun (2003). "Syria in the times of Apollodorus of Damascus". In Giuliana Calcani (ed.). Apollodorus of Damascus and Trajan's Column: From Tradition to Project. L'Erma di Bretschneider. pp. 25–34\. ISBN 978-8-8826-5233-3. OCLC 57075431.
18. ^ Festa Farina, Fiorella (2003). "Foreword (1)". In Giuliana Calcani (ed.). Apollodorus of Damascus and Trajan's Column: From Tradition to Project. L'Erma di Bretschneider. pp. 9–10\. ISBN 978-8-8826-5233-3. OCLC 57075431.
19. ^ Adam, Jean-Pierre (1994). Roman Building: Materials and Techniques. Routledge. p. 189.
20. ^ R. T. Ridley (1989), "The Fate of an Architect, Apollodoros of Damascus", Athenaeum. 67: 551–565.

## References

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* This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Apollodorus". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 186.

## Further reading

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* Apolodoro de Damasco (1867). "Πολιορκητικα". In Carle Wescher; Anselme Petetin (eds.). Poliorkētika kai poliorkiai diaphorōn poleōn. Poliorcétique des Grecs. Traités thēoriques. Récits historiques. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
* Cassius Dio (1925) [3rd century], "Epitome of Book 69", Cassius Dio's Roman History, translated by Earnest Cary (Loeb Classical Library ed.), Roman History, 69.3–4, retrieved 21 September 2024 - via Thayer's LacusCurtius
* Grout, James (n.d.) "Apollodorus of Damascus". Roma: Essays on Roman Architecture. In the Encyclopædia Romana.
* Landart, Paula (6 March 2023). Finding Ancient Rome: Walks in the city. Paula Landart.
* Procopius (1940) [6th], The Buildings, translated by H. B. Dewing (Loeb Classical Library century ed.), Book IV, 6:11–16; pp. 271–273 - via Thayer's LacusCurtius

## External links

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* Media related to Apollodorus of Damascus at Wikimedia Commons

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