Baths of Caracalla

Despite being in ruins now, the Baths of Caracalla's magnitude and materiality serve as a reminder of the creativity of the Classical Romans who created them. The Caracalla Baths were used for much more than just body washing. The baths in Classical Rome were located in the east of the city. In Bath, England, the ancient Roman baths have recently undergone conservation and are now a museum and spa. Three temperature baths were available at the location.

The first bath in the sequence in the Baths of Caracalla architecture is the Frigidarium, which has the coldest temperature. A medium-temperature bath is the Tepidarium. The Caldarium is like a hot bath. After the series, there was a temperature procession from cold to the hierarchy of the Caldarium. As part of the social bathing experience, the indoor bath building also housed pools, locker rooms, and saunas. Although the internal spaces do not currently have roofs, one can still appreciate the size of the amenities.

The History of Baths of Caracalla says that the baths were built by the emperor Septimius Severus in 206 AD, but they were finished by his son, the emperor Caracalla, in 216 AD. According to the history of Baths of Caracalla, baths could be found in practically every town. They were used for social interaction and leisure pursuits in addition to serving as a place to wash up. Although there was typically an entrance fee, baths were accessible to all social classes. Typically, this cost was low so that everyone could use the bathhouses. Despite some disagreement, historical evidence from bathhouses reveals that women and men were typically kept apart, with ladies and children visiting in the morning or early afternoon and males visiting in the evening. The Baths of Caracalla, which will be the subject of the remainder of the course, are one of the most well-known bathhouses.