The Romans certainly knew a thing or two about beautiful yet sturdy, long-lasting architecture: I remember thinking just that the first time I visited the majestic Pont du Gard, in the South of France – closer to where I am from than Rome itself – a colossal aqueduct built in the 1st century AD to carry water to Nemausus, the city today known as Nîmes. Two thousand years old and still standing, just like the Coliseum, the Pantheon, or the Arena di Verona. And there is no magic involved, just concrete. 

Roman concrete has been studied by modern engineers for decades and it is easy to understand why: it lasts. It lasts more than any of our modern buildings will ever do, but why? To be fair, the Romans didn’t invent concrete, even though they are certainly the ones who made it famous.