The Roman Baths Pt 1 - Nov 13

The Roman Baths in the city of Bath were the highlight of the weekend for me. I wish I had known more about them prior to the visit as I think I would have enjoyed them even more. Nonetheless, I spent over 4 hours exploring them and learning a great deal. The temple and baths complex was used from the 1st to the 4th centuries AD and was not rediscovered until late in the 19th century. These baths are unusual for Roman baths, for both their size and the amount of hot water used. Typical Roman bathing consisted of moving through a series of hot rooms and then having a cold plunge, with the possibility of a dip in a small bath of hot water. However, these baths are fed by a hot spring (46 °C) that rises at a rate of over 1 million litres per day! This natural phenomen was not understood by the Romans and was thought to be the work of the gods. The water was thought to have healing powers and attracted visitors from across the Roman empire.

View from the terrace with the Great Bath below and Bath Abbey in the background

The Great Bath - the centerpiece of the bathing establishment here
It is fed by water from the Sacred Spring and is 1.6 m deep and lined with 45 pieces of thick sheets of lead.

The Great Bath was HUGE - looked inviting and was warm, but since there is no roof anymore the water is full of algae

Andrea (from Halifax) and pieces of the original columns which held up the roof (long since collapsed) over the Great Bath

The Sacred Spring - this is where the hot thermal water originates

Although people didn't bathe in the Sacred Spring, they tossed in offerings to the goddess Sulis Minerva. The most common offering was Roman coins, of which 12,000 have been found here. The Romans also made curses here! They would inscribe them on sheets of lead or pewter, roll these up and toss them into the Spring where they believed the spirit of the goddess lived. Many of these curses were on display and they were really interesting!