Most people in ancient Rome lived in rented apartments. Today, a 1,900-YEAR-OLD Roman apartment block is still standing in Rome, at the foot of the Capitoline Hill. Records from the 4th century say the city had about 46,000 apartment blocks, called “insulae.” In comparison, there were fewer than 2,000 private houses. Some of these buildings were so tall that Augustus banned anything higher than 70 Roman feet (about 20 meters). Later, Emperor Trajan lowered the limit to 60 Roman feet. The floors worked the opposite way from today. Shops were on the ground floor, and rich tenants lived on the first floor. The higher you went, the cheaper the rent and the worse the living conditions: there was no running water, there were fewer windows, and there were a lot of stairs to climb.

Did Religion Actually Hold the Mighty Roman Empire Together? Core ideas of loyalty and stability were significantly affected by Roman religion during the empire. thecollector.com/religion-ro… Via @romanhistory1