Stabian Baths, Roman thermal complex in Pompeii, Italy
The Stabian Baths are an ancient Roman bathing complex in Pompeii with separate sections for men and women, featuring changing rooms, cold pools, warm chambers, and hot rooms arranged in a linear sequence. The layout allows visitors to understand the path people took as they moved through increasingly heated spaces.
The complex was built around 125 BC and is the oldest known public bath facility in Pompeii. Around 80 BC, renovations added a circular steam room for dry heat treatments.
The central courtyard served as a meeting place where people exercised and interacted before bathing. This social function is still visible in how the spaces flow together, showing how integral these baths were to daily community life.
An advanced heating system circulated hot air through hollow spaces beneath raised floors and within walls to warm the various areas. Understanding this system helps visitors recognize the purpose and connection between different rooms during their tour.
A circular dry heat room was added during renovations around 80 BC and shows how Romans improved their facilities over time. This room sits apart from the main sequence and reveals that the bathhouse evolved to meet changing preferences across generations.
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