Roman baths combined the facilities of a modern leisure centre with the atmosphere of a social club.
After exercising, bathers entered the cold room (frigidarium), an area similar to a foyer, which was possibly open-aired. On either side of the cold room there were changing rooms and latrines for men and women. Visiting the toilet was considered a social activity and a sponge on a stick was used in place of toilet roll.
The warm rooms (tepidaria) were positioned over a pillared hypocaust which allowed hot air to circulate beneath the floors. The bases of the tiled pillars which once supported the floor can still be seen.
The hot rooms (caldaria), were closest to the furnaces and were where bathers could have taken a sauna, used the steam room or enjoyed a massage with scented oils.
Bathers would then have used the semi-circular hot plunge pools next to the furnaces to rinse off, which are now hidden beneath the museum. There were also cold plunge pools and washbasins in the semi-circular room nearby.
The Roman writer, Seneca (4BC - AD65), took an apartment above a bathhouse and described the noisy experience in a letter to his friend Lucilius. He complained about the cries of the sausage sellers, the groans of men exercising and the yelps of men having their armpit hairs removed with tweezers.
(Information from 'Letters': 56.1/2)
Disclaimer
The text and pictures on this page are derived from the 'Heritage Unlocked' series of guidebooks published in 2004. We intend to review, update and enhance the content in the near future as part of the Portico project, whose objective is to provide information on the history, significance, research background and sources for all English Heritage properties.
