Introduction

The Shape of Roman History project explores the history of Roman Republic through an analysis of the most up-to-date database of ancient persons available (http://romanrepublic.ac.uk/). Through the existing rdf database, we were able to make new connections and gain a deeper insight into Roman life. The data visualizations in this project were created with D3. Google Charts, and Unity3D. This project is affiliated with UCLA RomeLab (http://hvwc.etc.ucla.edu/).

DPRR RDF Repository - Query

Using the Digital Prosopography of the Roman Republic’s RDF Repository, database queries were manually inputted and returned with the specific data. Here is an example of a query used to find all the documented Romans with the title of Triumphator:

Visualizations

The Roman Funeral

The Roman Funeral offered families an opportunity to highlight the achievements of their deceased ancestors. Many funerals culminated in a speech on the Rostra, the primary speaking platform in the Forum, with actors hired to wear garments associated with the highest political position each ancestor in the family obtained.

An in situ representation of funerals for all men in the database, with three levels of certainty.
Funerals on the Rostra

An interactive 3D “bar graph” of funerals per 25 year period.
Funerals as a Bar Graph

General Statistics

The number of Roman women born in each 25 year period.
Roman women born per 25 Years

The number of adopted sons born in each 25 year period.
Adopted Sons per 25 Years

The number of Roman men who remarried at least once per 50 years.
Roman Men with at least 2 Wives

The number of violent deaths that occurred in Roman history per 50 years.
Violent Deaths per 50 Years

The family connections of P. Valerius Poplicola, including children, spouse, and adoptions. (Node color represents family affiliation, node size represents how many others a person is connected to)
Family of P. Valerius Poplicola

The family connections of P. Valerius Volus, including children, spouse, and adoptions. (3D - Node color represents family affiliation)
Family of P. Valerius Volus

The lifespan of Romans according to the database (large numbers represent uncertainty).
Lifespan of Romans

Percentage of Birth/Death Dates Listed as Uncertain per 50 Years.
Uncertainty in Birth/Death Dates by Year

Visualizations by Political Office

Many political offices existed in Rome. Some, like consul, were held by the same number of people per year (2), while others, like dictator, were appointed in times of crisis only. These visualizations can be used to, among other things, show gaps in the database.

Triumphators

The number of Romans that held the office title of Triumphator every 25 years.
Triumphators per 25 Years

The highest office obtained by distinguished Triumphators.
Highest Office of Triumphators

Censors

The number of Censors that died in each 25 year period.
Censors that died per 25 Years

Senators

The number of Romans who became Senators per 25 Years.
Roman Senators per 25 Years

The maximum length of Senator office terms over time.
Senator Office Terms

Consuls

The number of Romans that held the office title of Consuls every 25 years.
Roman Consuls per 25 Years

The number of Consuls with a wife, who is the daughter of another Consul per 25 years. This shows how closely intertwined the upper positions of political offices were.
Consuls whose wife is daughter of another Consul

The number of Consuls with a daughter married to another Consul per 25 years. This visualization is related to the previous one.
Consuls with daughter married to another Consul

Family Lines with Consuls who married someone whose father held a higher office.
Consul families who married into a higher status

The number of Consuls per family line.
Consuls per Family Line

The number of Consul by their Nomen.
Consul by Nomen

The most popular first names of Consuls.
Popular Consul First Names

Network Visualizations

Linked below are network visulizations of specific Romans in the database. The networks show their familial connections.
Family Network Visualizations

Project Contributors

Principle Investigator: Chris Johanson

Benjamin Niedzielski
Benjamin Niedzielski’s Visualizations

Kaylyn Nguyen
Kaylyn Nguyen’s Visualizations

Dianne Peng
Dianne Peng’s Visuazliations

Jarett Horton
Jarett Horton’s Visuazliations

Kyle Fernando
Kyle Fernando’s Visualizations

Leslie Aguilar
Leslie Aguilar’s Visualizations

Nancy Paucer
Nancy Paucer’s Visualizations

Natasha Ann
Natasha Ann’s Visualizations

Olivia Kope
Olivia Kope’s Visualizations

Theodora Ng
Theodora Ng’s Visulizations