Baths at Ostia

The preservation and extensive excavations at Ostia Antica have brought to light 24 different bath complexes in the town. These range from large public baths, such as the Forum Baths, to smaller most likely private ones such as the small baths (I,XIX, 5). It is unclear from the evidence if there was a fee charged or if they were free.[1] Baths in Ostia would have served both a hygenic and a social function like in many other parts of the Roman world. Bath construction increased after an aqueduct was built for Ostia in the early Julio-Claudian Period.[2] [3] Many of the baths follow simple row arrangements, with one room following the next, due to the density of buildings in Ostia. Only a few, like the Forum Baths or the Baths of the Swimmers had the space to include palestra.[4] Archaeologist name the bath houses from features preserved for example the inscription of Buticoso in building I,XIV,8 lead to the name Bath of Buticosus or the mosaic Neptune in building II,IV,2 lead to the Baths of Neptune. The baths in Ostia follow the standard numbering convention by archaeologists, who divided the town into five regions, numbered I to V, and then identifying the individual blocks and buildings as follows: (region) I, (block) I, (building) 1.[5]

Baths at Ostia
Ostia, Forum Baths
Click on the map to see marker.
LocationOstia, Province of Roma
Coordinates41°45′14″N 12°17′21″E
Site notes
Websitewww.ostiaantica.beniculturali.it

Regio I

Forum Baths

The Forum Baths (I,XII,6) are located of the Via della Forica south of the Forum. The complex is also called the Thermae Gavii Maximi, named after Marcus Gavius Maximus, the praetorian prefect who sponsored their construction.[6] [7] The baths were intended for public use in Ostia Antica and covered c. 3,200 square meters. Statues of Hygieia, Aesculapius, and Fortuna were some of the many statues recovered from the bath that most likely belonged to the Forum Bath's decorative program. Additionally, cipollino columns were used to decorate the bath house.[8]

Tubuli of the Forum Baths

There were several phases of construction for the baths. The Forum Baths were initially built during the reigns of Emperor Antoninus Pius c. 160 C.E. with subsequent additions during the Severan Dynasty (193-225 C.E.), reign of Maxentius and Constantine (306-337 C.E.), and finally during the reign of Theodosius (379-395 C.E.).[9] The Baths were constructed in the city center and were the largest of all Ostia baths with a large palaestra south of the main building.[10] The Forum Baths are characteristic of the experimental mode of planning during Hadrianic-Antonine period.[11] The structure may have reached 15–17 meters tall, although not as high the remains are still impressive. Along the southern face of the building are the warm rooms of the bath house, place to take advantange of the sun's passive heating.[12] Here a modern visitor can see the octagonal sun-bathing room (heliocaminus), an ellipitcal sweating room (laconicum) two tedpiaria and a caldarium with three pools.[13] Many hairpins were recovered during excavations proving that the baths were used by women. It is assumed that this would be at a separate time of day from men, but no clear evidence exists.[14]

Baths of Buticosus
Mosaic of Triton and a Nereid, Baths of Buticosus

This small bathhouse (I,XIV,8) was constructed during the reign of Trajan circa 110 C.E. and remodeled in the middle of the second century C.E.[15] This bath is typical of many of the balnea in Ostia, where the rooms are built into the established city grid leading to a chaotic interior layout. In Room 4 is a black and white mosaic with marine animals and a man. Besides the man is an inscription EPICTETVS BVTICOSVS, giving the bath house it's modern name. This man was a bathing attendant and holds a bucket and a stick.[16] In the caldarium is another black and white mosaic with a marine scene of Triton and Nereid. The bath was supplied with water by a tank equipped with a noria in the adjacent Republican Sacred Area.[17]

Baths of Mithras

The baths of Mithras (I,XVII,2) was built around c. 125 C.E. and modified in the early Severan Period. The eponymous mithraeum was built in the late second or early third century C.E. and is accessbile by a staircase in the northern part of the building.[18] The remains preserve evidence of the utilitarian aspects of a Roman bathhouse such as a waterwheel for bringing water into the bathhouse and a boiler room for heating the caldaria and tepidaria.[19] Some of the earliest Christian imagery found in Ostia comes from the Baths of Mithras.[20]

Small Baths

This bath (I,XIX,5)(c. 385 square meters) was built in late antiquity around 450-500 C.E. reusing Hadrianic bricks.[21] It was accessible only from the warehouse to the east of it. It is one of the last building projects before the abandonment of the city. [22] The building was constructed above the rubble of the collapsed insulae and reused many of the rooms in the area for the bath such as the street entrance of a former shop being converted into the apodyterium. [23]

Regio II

Baths of Neptune
Mosaic of Neptune that gave the name to the baths

East of the theater is another large bath complex covering c. 4,400 square meters and is known as the Baths of Neptune (II,IV,2). The structure, built late during the reign of the emperor Hadrian, dedicated early in the reign of Antonius Pius. At the end of the second century C.E it was restored by Gamala Iunior.[24] The bath house is surrounded on four sides by streets and has entrances on each street.[25] The eponymous mosaic of Neptune riding a chariot drawn by hippocampi and surrounded by marine animals can be found after entering the bathhouse, this room is just south of the frigidarium. In an adjacent room is the mosaic of Amphitrite riding a hippocampus. The Baths of Neptune are one of the few in Ostia that contains an open air palaestra, surrounded on three sides by marble columns.[26] Under the palaestra was a reservoir that received water from the Julio-Claudian aqueduct and feed the bathhouses in the area.[27] In a room to the south-east of the palaestra is a mosaic with Two boxers with spiked gloves, two boxers-wrestlers and a wrestler. The bathhouse was constructed with a monumental facade along the Decumanus, built at the same time as the bathhouse and repaired in 350 C.E., possibly after an earthquake is 346 C.E.[28] There is a central exedra paved with marble that had a life-sized statue of Sabina, wife of Hadrian, dressed as the goddess Ceres. This has been identified as a shrine for the Imperial Cult. [29]

Baths of the Coachmen
The Coachmen mosaic that gave the name to the baths

This modest bathhouse (II, II, 3) is found close to the Porta Romana and Via Ostiensis. It has been speculated that it was the guild headquarters for the Cisiarii (Latin for Coachmen) however there is no evidence for this. The structure was built during the Hadrianic era and refurbished during the 3rd Century CE.[30] Notable is the large black and white mosaic in the frigidarium which depicts two sets of walls, possibly referring to Rome and Ostia, four figures of Atlas and a set of two-wheeled wagons (in Latin cisia) drawn by mules with names like Pudes (Modest), Podagrosus (Arthritic), Potiscus (Thirsty?), and Barosus (Silly). It is this mosaic that gives the name to the bath house.[31] In recent excavations, a noria (wooden water wheel) was discovered in the rooms south of the frigidarium. Enslaved people would have walked in the wheel to draw up and distribute water needed.[32]

Bath under the Via dei Vigili (Baths of the Provinces)

A small bathhouse (II, V) has been partially uncovered in the Via dei Vigili, near the barracks of the firefighters. Some archaeologists also call it the Baths of the Provinces. The construction dates to circa 50 C.E. soon after Ostia received its aqueduct.[33] [34]The black and white mosaic is the most impressive part of the structure. At its center is a group of dolphins flanked by heads that represent different Roman provinces, encircling these are images of shields and spears implicating Rome's conquering of the provinces.[35]

Regio III

Baths of the Christian Basilica

These baths (III,I,2-3) were constructed during the reign of Trajan and restored sometime during the early third century C.E. It is unclear if they are related to their namesake, the neighboring Christian Basilica (III, I, 4). [36]

Baths of Trinacria

These baths (III,XVI,7) which were built at the same time as the Serapeum, were constructed during the reign of Hadrian.[37] They were named after a mosaic found in the corridor south of the frigidarium which shows a female head with a triskeles, or three legs, behind her. The suspensurae, or raised floor, was restored during the reign of Commodus.[38] In one of the heated rooms is a mosaic that potential advertised where one could find prostitutes in the bathhouse.[39] Although others suggest that it was a nickname for an unofficial youth organization.[40]

Baths in Horrea III, XVII, 1

This warehouse was built during the Hadrianic Period and most likely was privately owned. During the fourth century C.E. a set of rooms in the south end of the building was converted into a bath suite with mosaics.[41] This balnea, along with several other refurbished bathhouses, served the Late Antique population of Osita.[42]

List of Identified Baths

Regio I

  • Forum Baths
  • Baths of Buticosus
  • Baths of Mithras
  • Small Baths (I,XIX, 5)

Regio II

  • Baths of Neptune
  • Baths of the Coachmen
  • Baths under the Via dei Vigili (Baths of the Provinces)

Regio III

  • Baths of Trinacria
  • Baths of the Christian Basilica
  • Maritime Baths
  • Baths of the Seven Sages
  • Baths in Horrea III, XVII, 1

Regio IV

  • Baths of the Six-Columns
  • Byztantine Baths
  • Baths of the Skeleton
  • Baths of Silenus
  • Baths of Musiciolus
  • Baths IV,V,6

Regio V

  • Baths of the Philosopher
  • Baths of the Jealous One
  • Baths of the Swimmer

See also

References
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  2. "Rete idrica". Parco Archeologico di Ostia Antica. Ministero per Beni culturali. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  3. Hänninen, Marja-Leena (2020). "Bathing in Ancient Ostia". Life and Death in a Multicultural Harbour City: 147.
  4. Yegul, Fikret (2010). Bathing in the Roman World. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 69. ISBN 978-0-521-54962-2.
  5. "Ostia Topographical Dictionary". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  6. Petrovic, Andrej, ed. (2019). The materiality of text: placement, perception and presence of inscribed texts in classical antiquity. Leiden: Brill. p. 351.
  7. Miliaresis, Ismini (2013). Heating and fuel consumption in the Terme del Foro at Ostia: a dissertation presented to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Virginia in Candidacy for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PDF).
  8. Macadam, Alta (2006). Blue Guide: Rome (9th ed.). New York: WW Norton. p. 511. ISBN 1-905131-11-9.
  9. "Regio I - Insula XII - Terme del Foro (I,XII,6)".
  10. Smyth, Oona (2002). Ostia Antica. Rome: Soprintendenza Archeologica di Ostia. p. 33. ISBN 88-7047-091-1.
  11. Yegul, Fikret (2010). Bathing in the Roman World. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 140. ISBN 978-0-521-54962-2.
  12. Ring, James (1996). "Windows, Baths and Solar Energy in the Roman Empire". American Journal of Archaeology. 100 (4): 717–724.
  13. Smyth, Oona (2002). Ostia Antica. Rome: Soprintendenza Archeologica di Ostia. p. 33. ISBN 88-7047-091-1.
  14. Smyth, Oona (2002). Ostia Antica. Rome: Soprintendenza Archeologica di Ostia. p. 33. ISBN 88-7047-091-1.
  15. Blümich, Bernhard; Del Federico, Eleonora; Jaschtschuk, Denis; Küppers, Markus; Fallon, Katelin; Steinfeld, Adelaide; Tomassini, Paolo (2021). "Nondestructive Analysis of Wall Paintings at Ostia Antica". Heritage. 4: 4423.
  16. "Terme del bagnino Buticosus". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  17. "Terme di Buticoso". Parco Archeologico di Ostia Antica. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  18. "Terme del Mitra". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  19. Yegul, Fikret (2010). Bathing in the Roman World. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-521-54962-2.
  20. Boin, Douglas (2013). Ostia in Late Antiquity. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 76. ISBN 978-1-107-02401-4.
  21. Lavan, Luke; Mulryan, Michael (2015). Field Methods and Post-Excavation Techniques in Late Antique Archaeology. Brill. p. 277. ISBN 978-90-04-30977-7.
  22. "Terme Piccole (I,XIX,5) (Small Baths)". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  23. Lavan, Luke; Mulryan, Michael (2015). Field Methods and Post-Excavation Techniques in Late Antique Archaeology. Brill. pp. 277–281. ISBN 978-90-04-30977-7.
  24. Boin, Douglas (2013). Ostia in Late Antiquity. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-107-02401-4.
  25. Yegul, Fikret (2010). Bathing in the Roman World. New York: Cambridge University Press. pp. 70–71. ISBN 978-0-521-54962-2.
  26. "Terme di Nettuno". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  27. Schram, Wilke D. "Ostia Antica (Italy)". Roman Aqueducts. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  28. "Portico di Nettuno". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
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  30. Smyth, Oona (2002). Ostia Antica. Rome: Soprintendenza Archeologica di Ostia. p. 16. ISBN 88-7047-091-1.
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  36. "Terme della Basilica Cristiana (III,I,2-3)". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
  37. "Terme della Trinacria". ostiaantica.beniculturali.it. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
  38. "Terme della Trinacria (III,XVI,7)". Ostia Antica. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
  39. Panciera, M (1999). "Cunnilingus in an Ostia bath". American Philological Association meeting.
  40. Kleijwegt, Marc (1994). "Iuvenes and Roman Imperial Society". Acta Classica. 37: 79–102.
  41. Poccardi, Grégoire (2006). "Les bains de la ville d'Ostie à l'époque tardo-antique (fin IIIe -début VIe siècle)". Les cités de l’Italie tardo-antique (IVe – VIe siècle) : institutions, économie, société, culture et religion: 167–186.
  42. Gering, Axel (2013). "Ruins, Rubbish Dumps and Encroachment: Resurveying Late Antique Ostia". Field Methods and Post-Excavation Techniques in Late Antique Archaeology: 276.


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