Roman gardens and ornamental horticulture became highly developed under Roman civilization, and thrived from 150 BC to 350 AD. The Gardens of Lucullus (Horti Lucullani), on the Pincian Hill in Rome, introduced the Persian garden to Europe around 60 BC. It was seen as a place of peace and tranquillity, a refuge from urban life, and a place filled with religious and symbolic meaning. As Roman culture developed and became increasingly influenced by foreign civilizations, the use of gardens expanded. The Roman garden's history, function, and style is investigated through archaeological and archaeobotanical research, famously conducted at Pompeii, literary sources, and wall paintings and mosaics in homes. Influences Roman gardening was influenced by Egyptian and Persian gardening techniques, through acquaintance with Greek gardening. The gardens of Ancient Persia were organized around rills, known from Pasargadae and other sites. Although archaeological evidence of rills have yet to be found in classical Greek gardens, scholars believe that the Romans learned this technique from the Greeks. Persian gardens developed in response to the arid climate. Gardens were enclosed to gather winter warmth, protect them from drying winds, and differentiate them from the barren and glaring Persian terrain. The soil was cultivated to became rich and fertile. When Alexander the Great conquered parts of Western Asia, he brought back with him new varieties of fruits and plants that prompted a renewed interest in horticulture. Formal gardens had existed in Egypt as early as 2800 BC. At the time of the 18th dynasty of Egypt, gardening techniques, used to beautify the homes of the wealthy, were fully developed. Porticos (porches) served to connect the home with the outdoors, creating outdoor living spaces. Even before Alexander, Cimon of Athens is said to have torn down the walls of his garden to transform it into a public space. Roman pleasure gardens were adapted from the Grecian model, where such a garden also served the purpose of growing fruit, but while Greeks had "sacred grove" style gardens, they did not have much in the way of domestic gardens to influence the peristyle gardens of Roman homes. Open peristyle courts were designed to connect homes to the outdoors. Athens did not adopt the Roman style that was used to beautify temple groves and create recreational spaces in the less traditional Grecian cities of Sparta, Corinth and Patras, which adopted the Western peristyle domestic gardens. Uses Roman gardens were built