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Appreciation post: Finally got to see the real color of that Roman concrete sample
I keep seeing people online say Roman concrete was just gray, like ours. But I got to handle a piece from a dig site near Pompeii last year, and it's not just gray. It has these tiny flecks of red and black from the volcanic ash they used, and it almost looks speckled up close. The guide said the mix was specific to the area because they used local stuff, which is why concrete from other places looks different. It matters because when you see a picture labeled 'Roman concrete' and it's plain gray, you're missing a key detail about their local building methods. I took a bunch of photos with my macro lens to show the texture, and it's wild how much detail you can see. Has anyone else noticed regional color differences in old building materials like that?
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