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Roman baths
Roman baths were a major part of the daily life of a Roman. Romans didn't go to the baths just to get clean, they also went to socialise. Very wealthy Romans had their own private bathing facilities in their homes, but most commonly people used public baths. Lots of Romans went to public baths everyday. When going to a bath a small fee applied. At a Roman bath, a person would first go to the apodyterium (changing room), then they would go to the tepidarium (room where they got cleaned). The tepidarium was where the striglling (scrape oil off a persons' body using an L shaped object) took place. After the tepidarium was a very hot and dry room (like a sauna) called the laconium. Then they would go to the second to last room, the caldarium (steam room), then the final room was the frigidarium (plunge pool). When people walked around the baths, they wore wooden sandals because the floor was very hot.
People didn't just go to Roman baths to get clean, they also went because the baths sometimes had a fitness centre, a bar, a restaurant and more. Baths were often the community centre. The baths were decorated with high ceilings and mosaics. Each day a bath centre would use around 15,000 - 20,000 cubic metres of water. Water was heated by fire through pipe underneath the gardens. The water then went into the main pool where it was then transported to the other rooms.
In 500AD there were 900 baths in Rome. Romans built baths wherever they made comquests. Emperors also built baths to make people like them. Some baths were mixed bathing and some were seperate. Public baths were called thermae, and private baths or neighbourhood baths were called balnea.
People didn't just go to Roman baths to get clean, they also went because the baths sometimes had a fitness centre, a bar, a restaurant and more. Baths were often the community centre. The baths were decorated with high ceilings and mosaics. Each day a bath centre would use around 15,000 - 20,000 cubic metres of water. Water was heated by fire through pipe underneath the gardens. The water then went into the main pool where it was then transported to the other rooms.
In 500AD there were 900 baths in Rome. Romans built baths wherever they made comquests. Emperors also built baths to make people like them. Some baths were mixed bathing and some were seperate. Public baths were called thermae, and private baths or neighbourhood baths were called balnea.