EXTRAVAGANT ROMEAncient Roman Bath Houses

WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL, ANYWAY?

DID YOU KNOW? In Ancient Rome, bathing was not only

used as a cleansing ritual, but also as a public place that people could have meetings and other social events!

BESIDES BATHING, WHAT ELSE?

There were many, many rooms that had many different services and uses. Examples: hot baths,

warm baths, steam baths, cold baths, massage rooms, gyms, libraries, shops and public latrines

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That’s a Floor Plan from a Roman Bath House in a small town called Leintwardine.

Imagine the complexity and extravagance of the bath houses in the big cities!

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THE GOOD LIFE

The biggest names in business and government would meet at these public bath houses to discuss politics, law, and even war conspiracies.

PUBLIC SLAVE SERVICE

When you attended a bath house, there would be public slaves waiting to assist you! They would bath you, bring you food or drink, massage you, oil you, and put away and retrieve your clothing.

WATCH OUT!

The slaves working the bath houses were known to be the most dishonest and sneaky help around!

SLAVES OF THE RICH

The richest of men would bring their own slaves to hold their towels, clothes, and watch over their personal belongings.

INNOVATION FOR INDULGENCE

Roman Bath Houses are the first place where the use of aqueducts have such an impact in infrastructure.

THE GYMNASIUM

Usually an outdoor arena, the gymnasium housed different sets of weights, along with discus throwing competitions, and ball games!

DID YOU KNOW?

The Roman’s covered their bodies in oil before a workout? Talk about superficial egotistical hunks!

TRAINING AND FITNESS

The Bath Houses were the central place for young athletic roman men to train for the national competitions!

RELAXATION

If life was stressing you out, the bath house was the place to be! The bath houses were then what modern day spas are today!

Well, not quite

MORE LIKE THIS:

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION Since the dawn of the Bath House, they have

sprung up in small towns and big cities alike. They became the hip, happening, social place

to be if you want to be somebody, or if you want to attract tourists and potential residents.

WHAT ABOUT THE WOMEN?

Women had separate rooms for bathing, massage, and even working out!

Hot Roman Cheerleaders! -->

ALL IT TAKES IS A LITTLE DOUGH $$$ The only hold back of the Roman Bath

House was this: No matter how public they may be, there was always a price to pay.

A price to be paid for slave service, towel service, massage service, food and drink service, gym memberships, locker services, and yes, even prostitute services!

And we can imagine none of this was cheap!

YOU CAN ALMOST TASTE IT

Click Here to Check Out This Video

Check out the video of a modern day bath house in Budapest- not much has changed since they started in Rome!