Understanding What Is The Significance Of Ancient Roman Bathing

By Paula Bauer


The idea of ancient Rome may mean more than one thing due to their greatness. For some, they represent Democracy where the populace becomes the final arbitrator to every final decision of the state. To others, they represent symbols of oppression like the crucifix and the arena.

In order not to be historically biased, a reasonable history scholar would be compelled to credit the Romans for some of the noble things they have established which is untarnished by their history of violence. Their technology, for example, happens to be the most advanced in Europe almost in parallel with Egyptians and Chinese. One of the greatest highlights of ancient Roman technology's achievements is the creation of the hot bath.

It was their mastery with hydraulics engineering that they were able to create hot baths called thermae. Originally, water used for bathing was cool or lukewarm and the bathing facilities were rather smaller in berth. These ancient baths called balnae were soon replaced by their heated renditions, as the Romans became more attuned to the perceived therapeutic effects of heated bathing water.

Water supply could hardly be a problem to these excellent Roman hydraulics engineers and architects. The aqueduct and dam system are able to supply steady amount of flowing water from the source to the sewers. Much of the proud achievements that inevitable lead to the Roman spa is all due to the same ingenuity which lead to the construction of mighty coliseums and early apartment buildings.

Naturally, the public thermal spas are segregated according to sex and such differences are often highly stratified. The bathroom of the females is smaller than the males in terms of space. Thus, one would only imagine how vast the entire spa complex would be.

So how does the public thermal spa work, knowing that there was no convenient mechanized system congruent to our contemporary system of heating an entire space or room? The Ancient Romans use an underfloor heating system called hypocaust, a type of very low basement where poor slaves were perilously assigned to keep the coals ignited. The intense heat ascends through the filtering floors of the entire bathroom complex, warming the pool water and the room alike.

Roman attitude towards bathing sets them apart from the rest of the civilizations of Europe and even as far as Middle East in terms of hygiene. One passage quoted about a Caesar who was asked by a foreigner why he bathes once a day, for which the ruler replied "because I no longer have the time to bathe twice a day". Thermal baths made bathing for Romans more than a necessity, as it becomes then their highly-valued luxury.

Judging by the history of Roman baths and their attitude towards bathing, have you ever noticed the strong significance it resembled with the modern people nowadays. Not much has changed with the fact that bathing can still be considered a highly-valued luxury. It is for that reason that a normal person would bathe more than once a day, visit a luxurious spa whenever time and money can accommodate the venture, or buy oneself a luxurious hot tub to enjoy it at home. Click hot tubs online at HotTubsHomeSpa.com for a lifestyle change.




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