| Basilica |
Courthouse or market
building. |
| Capitolium |
Temple to Jupiter, Juno
and Minvera. |
| Civitas |
Local government, citizenship. |
| Colonia |
A colonial city with
its territorium. |
| Curia |
Senate house. |
| Forum |
The center of the Roman
city. |
| Insula |
"Island;" City
block. |
| Macellum |
A market building. |
| Mundus |
The central point of
the planned Roman city. |
| Municipium |
A city with Latin rights
or Roman citizenship. |
| Oppidum |
A (walled) town. |
| Pomerium |
The religious boundary
around a city. |
| Quaestor |
The financial officer
of a municipium or colonia. |
| Territorium |
The land outside the
limits of a Roman city that belonged to the city. |
| Actus, plural actus |
A linear measure of 120
Roman feet. A square actus was equal to 14,400 square Roman
feet. |
| Ager |
Land. |
| Ager Arcifinius |
Unsurveyed land. |
| Ager Publicus |
Public land. |
| Agrimensor |
A Roman land surveyor. |
| Cadaster |
A large scale land survey
undertaken for purposes of taxation. |
| Cardo |
A limes parallel
to the cardo maximus. |
| Cardo Maximus |
One of the two principal
axes (usually N-S) of a centuriation. |
| Centuria |
An area of land equal
to 100 heredia. |
| Centuriation |
Limitatio, or,
the division of land in which limites divide the land into
regular squares or rectangles. |
| Century |
A square or rectangle
of a centuriation often divided into 100 plots of land. |
| Decumanus |
A limes parallel
to the decumanus maximus. |
| Decumanus Maximus |
One of the two principal
axes (usually E-W) of a centuriation. |
| Deductio |
Foundation of a colony;
the formal act of colonization. |
| Fines |
Boundary or boundaries. |
| Forma |
Map or plan. |
| Groma |
The groma was
the principal Roman surveying instrument. It was composed of a vertical
staff with horizontal cross pieces mounted on a bracket. Each cross
piece had a plumb line and plumb bob hanging vertically. Its main
use was to survey straight lines, squares, and rectangles. |
| Heredium |
An area of land equal
to 2 iugera, or 0.504 ha. |
| Insula |
Island, a city block. |
| Iter |
Roadway,
journey. |
| iter populo
non debetur |
"A public
right-of-way does not exist over private land." |
| Iugerum |
Two square actus
or 28,800 square Roman feet or .0252 ha. |
| Limes, Limites |
A road or track or path
that forms a division between neighboring centuries. |
| Limitatio |
Centuriation or the division
of land by intersecting Limites. |
| Mensor |
Measurer. |
| Mundus |
Central point of the
city. |
| Per strigas |
Regular division
of land parallel to the long axis of the colony. |
| Pes |
Foot. The Roman foot
measure is documented in a number of different measures, usually
0.2957 m. |
| Quintarius |
A limes at a multiple
of 5 centuries from one of the two principal axes of a centuriation. |
| Rigor |
Straight line boundary
without width. |
| Subsecivum |
Unallocated land. |
| Terminus |
Boundary mark. |
| Territorium |
Land which is under the
control of a Roman city. |
| Tetrans |
Main intersection. |
| Azimuth |
Angles that are measured
clockwise from any reference meridian. |
| Bearing |
A system of designating
direction of lines by means of an angle and quadrant letters. |
| EDM |
A device for measuring
distances using an infrared, radio wave or laser source to a remote
prism, reflector or solid surface normally integral with an angle
measuring device - see also Total Station. |
| Global Positioning
System (GPS) |
A collection of orbiting
satellites transmitting decodable data to ground based receivers
for position fixing originally developed for US military use. Differential
computations from known based control will allow for more accurate
results. |
| Grid |
A rectangular pattern
of intersecting lines superimposed onto a project drawing to enable
plan co-ordinates to be derived. The origin of the grid could be
Geographic, National Grid or of Local Assumed Origin. On Local grid
an indication of North is usually shown. With the advent of GPS,
increasing use will be made of an International standard known as
WGS84 as a grid origin especially for trans-frontier projects. A
"grid" of levels or spot heights is often required - it is not economic
to observe on a rigid set out basis and is usually according to
scale and terrain at an average density of spot heights. |
| Survey Stations |
A marker established
to control a survey, to be given co-ordinates for subsequent setting
out or further survey, usually peg, pin in concrete, road nail or
ground anchor. |
| Total Station |
An instrument capable
of measuring and recording, by electronic means, bearing, distance
and difference in height to another point - see also EDM. |
| Traverse |
A traverse is a series
of consecutive lines whose lengths and directions have been determined
from field measurements. |
| Triangulation Point |
Usually a concrete pillar
or high ground having co-ordinates relative to a National Grid and
height datum now being largely superseded by Satellite Positioning
(GPS) to fewer points but more accessible - also known as geodetic
point. |
| Trigonometrical Levelling |
Obtaining height differences
by vertical angle and distance using a Total Station as opposed
to conventional spirit levelling using an automatic Level (or similar)
and vertical staff. Not normally used for monitoring or precise
levelling but good accuracy may be obtained for other purposes when
using modern instrumentation in correct adjustment. |
