An Interactive Map of the Roman Empire

A couple of years ago I blogged about a must-bookmark resource from Stanford University for history instructors and trainees. That resource is called ORBIS and it has actually been upgraded given that the last time that I discussed it. ORBIS is Stanford Universitys Geospatial Network Model of the Roman Empire. On ORBIS students can calculate the distance and travel times in between hundreds of settlements in the Roman Empire. The computations take place according to the modes of travel that would have been used during the time of the Roman Empires biggest height. I determined the time and cost to take a trip by foot, wagon, and boat in between Roma and Londonium in the summer season and winter season. The calculations consist of the expense of feeding donkeys along the way. In this brand-new video I provide an intro to utilizing ORBIS..

Applications for EducationWhile you might certainly have trainees utilize Google Earth to map distances between settlements in the Roman Empire, ORBIS is a step above that because students can calculate travel times and ranges according the modes of transport that were readily available throughout the Roman Empire.