Insulae, multi-story apartment buildings in ancient Rome, served a variety of residential purposes. Because there was no piped water and no way out in the event of a fire, the cheapest rooms were at the top. The majority of the windows faced the street and had iron security bars on them. Examples from the Trajan era can be seen in the Roman harbor town of Ostia, but they appear to have been concentrated in Rome and a few other locations. Livy and Vitruvius mention them in Rome, but other writers ... (Read More)