Roman roads: the motorways of the ancient world

At the height of its power, the Roman Empire was linked by more than 80,000 km of paved roads. Legions, merchants, messages and ideas all travelled along them.

Via Appia — “the queen of roads”

Construction of the first great road, the Via Appia, began in 312 BC. It connected Rome with southern Italy, and parts of its original stone surface still exist today.

How they were built

1. Workers dug a trench down to firm ground.
2. They laid layers: large stones, gravel, then finer material.
3. On top went large, carefully fitted stone slabs, slightly cambered so water ran off into side ditches.

All roads lead to Rome

Emperor Augustus set up the Golden Milestone (Milliarium Aureum) in the Forum — a symbolic point from which distances were measured. Along the roads stood stone milestones, one every thousand Roman paces.

One of the most important roads, the Via Militaris, ran through today’s Serbia, linking Singidunum (Belgrade) and Naissus (Niš) with Constantinople.