This footage was filmed and produced 7 August 2023.

Ancient builders around the world created structures that still stand today, thousands of years later, from Roman engineers who built thick concrete sea barriers to Mayan masons who crafted plaster sculptures for their gods and Chinese builders who erected walls against invaders.

However, dozens of newer structures are already close to expiration: the concrete that makes up much of our modern world has a lifespan of between 50 and 100 years.

A growing number of scientists have been studying materials from distant times (dismantling pieces of buildings, studying historical texts, mixing imitated recipes) in hopes of discovering how they have been preserved over millennia.

This reverse engineering has revealed a surprising list of ingredients that were mixed into ancient buildings – materials like tree bark, volcanic ash, rice, beer and even urine. These unexpected additions could be key to some pretty impressive properties, like the ability to strengthen over time and “heal” cracks when they form.
Figuring out how to copy those features could have real impacts today: While our modern concrete has the strength to support huge skyscrapers and heavy infrastructure, it can't compete with the strength of these ancient materials.

SHOTLIST
1. Various Roman aqueducts in Israel (July 16, 2023);
2. Various from the Roman Colosseum (August 7, 2023);
3. Various from Chichen Itza (December 21, 2022).