Rome is the capital city and most populated comune of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. Rome is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, within Lazio , along the shores of the Tiber Valley. Vatican City is an independent country inside the city boundaries of Rome, and is headquarters of the worldwide Catholic Church under the governance of the Holy See. Rome is generally considered to be one of the cradles of Western civilization and Western Christian culture, and the centre of the Catholic Church.[1]
Coverage[]
Rome is featured in the documentary and Wrath of God, with Vatican City is settled in The Bodies Left Behind and Wrath of God.
In 1 week after people, black cats roams the streets of Rome. They were once unwelcome on the streets due to them being seen as bad luck, and without people to slaughter the cats, black cats would repopulate the country including Rome.[2]
A blackout in Sistine Chapel.
In 3 months after people, at the Sistine Chapel, the system which protects the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel and controlled by computer shuts down without electricity. However, the disappearance of humans actually helps the frescos, due to there being no ascending currents of human body heat.[3]
In 1 year after people, triggered by lightning strikes, wildfires rage uncheck and spreads across the world including Rome. The historic buildings burns, just like in the time of the ancients.[4] In 25 years after people, among the deteriorating structures of Rome, the Jubilee Church juts up from the undergrowth and its gleaming white walls resists the expansion of plant life.[2]
The Jubilee Church could theoretically endure for a long time.
In 75 years after people, despite in the midst of the decaying buildings, the Jubilee Church continues to endure and shine its clean, bright white walls. Its current state is thanks to the structure being coated with photocatalytic cement, which decompose CO2 and environment pollutants with sunlight, allowing it to maintain itself without humans. The cement makes it difficult for plants to colonize as it sheds dirt and water it ease, allowing the exterior of the Jubilee Church to theoretically last forever.[2]
In 250 years after people, there are only little changes at the Colosseum, but extreme plant growth is choking the ancient concrete. However, the ancient concrete is being preserve due to the Roman use of volcanic ash in limestone, which is a bit finer and a perfect chemical balance. The density of the volcanic ash prevents water to penetrate the concrete and expand during freeze-thaw cycles, allowing the Colosseum to continue to survive.[2]
The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel crumbles.
At 500 years after people, at the Vatican City, St. Peter's Square is completely covered by greenery.[2] Meanwhile, the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel have faded and cracked from the changing temperature and humidity. On the wall depicting "The Last Judgement", Michelangelo's heavenly sky has faded faster than most others thanks to its ultramarine pigment coming from Lapis Lazuli. The delicate nature of its atomic structure cause high humidity to break it apart, allowing sulphur to mix with oxygen turning the blue of the fresco to a yellowish-grey. After a half a millennium of without maintenance, the walls of the Sistine Chapel begins to weak and the vault of the roof pushes the walls apart, allowing bracing buttresses to fail, which initiates a chain reaction, with the ceiling first to break apart, then the entire chapel itself. Steven S. Ross states that the walls of the Sistine Chapel would collapse like opening a book.[3]
The dome of St. Peter's Basilica collapse.
Nearby, the iron support chains of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica are being pushed to the limit, due to the dome structure wanting to expand at the base. As the base pushes outward, a cross a decorative lantern at the top, weighing more than 3 tons, acts as a second force from above. Meanwhile, it's flat roof has been attacked by rainwater, with Michael J. Crosbie speculating that the roofing material would be the first to go due to the metal sheets would start weathering through which leads to the roof disappearance. Eventually, corrosion takes over at the iron support chains, causing it to break. With the extra support of the dome out of the equation, the supports of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica begins to crack till the entire dome crumbles into the structure, destroying the altar inside in the process.[2]
The Colosseum crumbles in an earthquake.
In 1,000 years after people, in the midst of overgrown Rome, the Colosseum continues to endure, however thicket growing inside the ancient concrete are tearing the structure apart. Tanya Komas states that birds have carried and deposited seeds from all corners of the Roman Empire throughout its history and it may be a large factor on eventually bringing the structure down. Under it's weakened condition, an earthquake strikes Rome, finally causing the entire Colosseum to collapse in a final push.
Transformation[]
The transformation of Rome are hardly mentioned, but visuals of the city transformation in Wrath of God may give a glimpse of what the city would become after a millennium.
Concept art of the Colosseum, which appears in 1,000 years after people.
The environment colonizing Rome appears to be a temperate forest, with plant life colonizing the buildings in the city, including its streets and ancient structures. This transformation can be seen in 500 years after people, when nature has colonize and cover the entirety of St. Peter's Square, along with the streets around St. Peter's Basilica. The same is true in 1,000 years after people, where said temperate forest could be seen in the background of the Colosseum, especially when plant life overgrown around the structure itself. Ruins of the historic buildings could be seen in the future, with plant life covering the rubble of the structures. It is most likely, and speculated, that the city of Rome would return back to its original habitat, just like when it was first founded by Romulus and Remus.
Gallery[]
