High Density Living, 2000 Years Ago: Inside the Roman Apartment Building

Roman apartment buildings called insulae pioneered vertical urban living as early as the third century BC, with structures rising up to eight stories that housed shops on ground floors and single-room units stacked above. As Rome's population surged, architects like Vitruvius championed high-rise construction as a practical solution to housing shortages, though the buildings were plagued by structural instability and fire hazards due to flimsy materials like wattle and daub. Real estate moguls like Marcus Licinius Crassus profited enormously from this housing market, buying fire-damaged properties and rebuilding them while tenants like Ancarenus Nothus complained about high rents and unsafe living conditions.