Rough topography of modern Rome

3D Model

This is a years-old capture of the Google Earth 3d mesh of modern Rome, which I have stretched vertically (quite a lot) and colored to make the differences in elevation more clear.

I use this to communicate the basic topography of the city to students in my Roman art course, but the mesh is based on measurements of the modern city. You can see the low plane of the old Roman forum, but you can also see the modern Via dei Fori Imperiali that crosses it. The edge of the river, too, reflects the current embankments, instead of the more gradual ancient slope.