All roads in ancient Rome stretched far longer than previously known, study shows

As the saying went, all roads once led to Rome — and those roads stretched 50% longer than previously known, according to a new digital atlas published Thursday

As the saying went, all roads once led to Rome — and those roads stretched 50% longer than previously known, according to a new digital atlas published Thursday.

The last major atlas of ancient Roman road networks was published 25 years ago. Since then, advances in technology and other newly accessible sources have greatly expanded researchers’ ability to locate ancient roadways.

Over five years, a team of archaeologists combed through historical records, ancient journals, locations of milestones and other archival data. Scientists then looked for clues in satellite imagery and aerial photography, including recently digitized photos taken from planes during World War II.

A fragment of a Roman milestone that was erected along the road Via Nova Traiana in Jordan.Adam Pažout / APWhen ancient accounts hinted at lost roads in a certain area, researchers analyzed the terrain from above to spot subtle traces — things like faint differences in vegetation, soil variations or shifts in elevation, as well as traces of ancient engineering like raised mounds or cut hillsides — that revealed where Roman lanes once ran.

“It becomes a massive game of connecting the dots on a continental scale,” said Tom Brughmans, an archaeologist and co-author of the study published in Scientific Data.