Other Information

These baths provide the much needed sanitisation facilites and the chance to socialise with friends. There was even a golf club there. The garden is gigantic so you will never be without somewhere to walk.

The Baths are located on the Appiam Way, the main route in and out of Rome. And are located at Regione XII Piscina Publica.

The Interior

The Baths do not only provide just a series of baths but a whole leisure complex. The complex includes a public library along with many other facilities. In the library, there are two rooms - one for Greek texts and one for Latin texts.

Floor plan of the complex

There is also a frigidarium (cold room), a double pooltepidarium (middle temperatures room) and a caldarium (hot room) as well as two palaestras (gyms where wresting and boxing took place). At the north of the building there was a natatio (swimming pool). It is roofless with bronze mirrors mounted all around to reflect sunlight into the pool area. The whole building is 6 metres above the ground for storage and furnaces. 

The libraries are on the east and west sides of the building and the north wall is devoted purely to shops. The reservoirs on the south wall are provided with water form the Marcian Aqueduct.

Why has it been built?

The complex has been built as a piece of political propaganda for Emperor Caracalla because he wants you, the public, to like him. This landmark is likely to be remembered for hundreds of years to come. Unlike most baths, here all Romans are welcome to come and enjoy themselves in this impressive, exquisitely detailed building. It is told that these baths create a huge sense of unity, it truly is a brilliant building that Caracalla has created because of the pleasurable experience it offers.

Farnese Bull

Farnese Hercules

The Baths are ornamented with quality sculptures all chosen by Caracalla himself. Amoung the Best Sculptures are the Farnese Bull (left) and Farnese Hercules (right).One of the largest statues is the giant 4m statue of Asclepius.