Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Spectacles of Rome: Bathing, Blood, and Chariots (Part 1)



by Liisa Eyerly

You’ve had an exhausting day

· At work
· Watching the kids or grandkids
· Completing a project that has been bugging you for too long

You need a break—maybe a small celebration. So you call a friend to go out for a bath.

If you were an ancient Roman, that is exactly what you would do, except the ancients did not save this experience for special occasions. Group bathing in the large public thermae or a smaller private balnea was part of daily life. If you were wealthy or middle class, visiting the baths might be as routine as taking a daily shower. Thanks to government subsidies, even the poor could afford to bathe a few times a week.

                                Badenweiler, Germany bathhouse model Brücke-Osteuropa, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

              Baths of Caracalla: Valina Tsikalá, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Roman bathhouses were more than places to clean up. These sprawling complexes were more like modern-day spas. Picture massage tables, exercise and game rooms, eating establishments, hairdressers, and manicurists. The grander baths, often commissioned by the emperors to showcase their generosity and win public favor, featured outdoor swimming pools, gymnasiums, parks for leisurely strolls, theaters, and libraries. The rooms were decorated with mosaic tile floors and beautiful wall murals. Despite these luxurious extras, the main attraction was always the bath itself. It was a social event, a chance to catch up with friends, meet new people, or even conduct business in a relaxing environment.

Grounds of the ruins of the Baths of Caracalla
 Grounds User:Ethan Doyle White, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

People bathed in the nude, so each bathhouse included a dressing area and at least three essential rooms with pools or tubs of varying temperatures.
  •  Tepidarium - warm and inviting
  •  Caldarium - intensely hot
  •  Frigidarium – cold, like stepping into a refrigerator
Re-created bath scene inside the remains of a public bathhouse in Bath, England

See the inset for a picture of the hypocaust columns supporting the floor above the furnace in the caldarium. (Bath, England)

Slaves kept the bathhouses running, tending furnaces beneath tiled floors to heat the rooms and water. In some complexes, an additional sauna-like hot room was available. Bathers moved between rooms in whatever order they preferred. In Fortunes of Death, my second book, there’s a scene where Sabina, follows a typical Roman bathing routine—starting in the tepidarium, soaking in the caldarium, and finishing with a bracing dip in the frigidarium or an outdoor pool. In book three Powers of Death a deserted bathhouse is the perfect setting for murder.
Roman bath in Bath, England
“The Roman ingenuity in engineering and architecture is truly remarkable. Their ability to create functional, luxurious, and climate-adaptive spaces like the baths speaks volumes about their understanding of materials, design, and human comfort.” (Chatgpt)

https://Commons.Wikimedia.org/Wiki/File:Dialogues of Roman Life.djvu

                                            Strigil  Toyotsu, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Hygiene was a central part of the Roman bath experience. Oil would be spread over the body then the day’s sweat and grime were scraped away with a curved metal tool called a strigil. Wealthier patrons had servants perform this task, while others managed it themselves.

                                    Baths of Caracalla Painting by Virgilio Mattoni, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Roman propriety typically kept the genders separate. Women usually bathed during reserved hours in the morning, and men in the afternoon. Although bathing was generally viewed as healthy and beneficial, some considered it indulgent and licentious, associating it with too much wine, luxurious food, and sex, especially in cases where mixed-gender bathing occurred. Many Jews abstained or used bathhouses guardedly to maintain their moral and religious standards. Tertullian, an early Christian, cautioned against overindulgence but accepted their role in hygiene.

Thank you for reading!


In the bustling streets of ancient Ephesus, fortunes can change in an instant. When one of the city’s wealthiest citizens is found crushed beneath his own triumphant memorial, the powerful elite demand justice—but at what cost? Enigmatic investigator Sabina faces her most perilous case yet. As secrets unravel and enemies close in, she must navigate political intrigue, dark sorcery, and forbidden love to uncover the truth. In a city where everyone has something to hide, who can be trusted? And how far will Sabina go to solve a mystery that could cost her everything?


Liisa Eyerly’s Secrets of Ephesus series adds a Christian twist to first-century Roman Empire mysteries. Her debut novel, Obedient Unto Death (2022), won the Eric Hoffer First Horizon Award and first place in Spiritual Fiction. The second book, Fortunes of Death, just launched. A lifelong mystery lover, Liisa was inspired by the Apostle Paul’s depiction of early Christians. After careers in teaching, librarianship, and stained glass, she began writing full-time at fifty. Liisa lives in northern Wisconsin with her husband and enjoys pickleball, Bible study, and visiting Ancient Roman sites.

Visit me at my website, on my Author Facebook page,

or purchase my books at:
Fortunes of Death
Obedient Unto Death
My Amazon book page














3 comments:

  1. Thank you for posting today, and Happy New Year to you and your family. I'm not sure how I feel about communal bathing, but would probably do it if you could wear a swim suit.

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  2. Intersting, Liisa! I wonder if we should reintroduce the Strigil. Haha! Maybe...

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    1. I think our modern-day scrubs, facials, sponges, etc., are substitutes. I definitely would love the pace of life to indulge in a daily spa experience.

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