Hadrian’s Baths at Lepcis Magna

1. Hadrian’s Baths at Lepcis Magna Let’s go Swimming! AD 126-127 How appropriate is this powerpoint background?!!

2. But first, questions….hmmm… • Think of all the words for ‘cold’’ • Think of all the words you know for ‘warm’ • What features/types of pools/extra elements would your ultimate pool complex have?

3. a list of Emperors Trajanic Dynasty • Nerva AD96-98 • Trajan AD98-117 • Hadrian AD117-138 Antonine Dynasty • Antoninus Pius AD138-161 • Marcus Aurelius AD161- 180 • Lucis Verus AD161-169 • Commodus AD177-192 Severan dynasty • (11 emperors) Emperors during the height of crisis AD 235-268 • Philip the Arabian • Many others (constant change) • Constantine AD 337-307 Julio-Claudian dynasty • Augustus 27BC- AD14 • Tiberius AD14 - 37 • Caligula AD37 – 41 • Claudius AD 41- 54 • Nero AD54- 68 Year of 4 emperors (AD 68 –AD69) • Galba • Otho • Vitellius Flavian Dynasty • Vespasian AD69-79 • Titus AD79-81 • Domitian AD 81-96

4. the background on baths • The Function of the baths in Roman times was much bigger than the function of swimming pools today. The Roman ones were for swimming, washing, medicinal, therapeutic & exercise. • In a way, the modern gym is like the ancient baths. • Action: Read & highlight ‘public baths’ in your workbook. NB; it discusses caracalla’s baths as an EXAMPLE. We study Hadrian’s baths in Leptis Magna

5. There were 2 types of baths: • Pre-imperial baths: (stabain baths, pompeii, the hunting baths, leptis magna) they have no symmetry, a separate section for women, small, privately owned,restrained decotation. • Imperial baths (like this one), rigid, bilateral symmetry, logical layout, large, publicly owned, lavish decoration, no separate area for women. • Hadrian’s baths are one of the earliest surviving examples of bathing complexes, which are symetrically designed. (first were trajan’s baths, 109AD). It was the first major public building to make use of imported marble as structural & decoarative material

6. Bilateral Symmetry means: • rooms/areas on either side of a central line, similar in layout, shape & function. They are symetrically designed along a north/south axis • The cold to hot process adopted by the Romans is reflected in the design • Bathers are lead from one area to another by the sequential arrangement • This is helped by the framed views from one room to another by the screen of columns • North = cold. South = warm

7. Swimming fun in your workbook! • Location: The man in the picture below has one eye. Leptis Magna, Libya • Architectural type: Functional, public baths • Purpose: Erected as aPublic service – so peoplecould go to the baths. To showthat even in distant parts of the Empire, they are still under the Personal care of the Emperor. ToShow Roman power, also to remind the people that they are part of the empire- propaganda & to glorify Leptis Magna • Dates of construction: C.AD 126-127.Built by Emperor Hadrian

8. Room Function/Location/Temp/Detail Natatio = outdoor swimming pool, for exercise & enjoyment. First pool in building.29m long x 15m wide. 1.5m deep. surrounded on 3 sides by a covered portico of corinthian columns made of pink marble. 4th side was decorated with arched niches inlaid with glass mosaics. Bottom of the pool is decorated with a mosaic that imitates gravel

9. Frigidarium= cold room, 18.2m x 14.9m. Largest room.Located in the centre of the building, between the horizontal & vertical axis of the building. transitional cool down after exercise area that separated the hot rooms from the cold rooms. Higher ceiling than other rooms.Roofed with 3 concrete cross-vaults decorated with elabourate mosaics. Vaults sprang from engaged pediments. Walls of it were originally covered in marble & decorated with mosaics. 2 cold plunge baths at ends of the hall were entered through arched doorways

10. Arched doorway into plunge pool Cross vault supported by engaged pediments Surrounding Black columns Walls Covered In marble Cold plunge bath Modern reconstruction of what the frigidarium would look like

11. Room Function/Location/Temp/Detail Tepidarium = the first warm room. Had a marble plunge bath as its central feature. This room was entered through an arched opening flanked by grey marble columns. Purpose of this room was for bathing Caldarium = the largest of the hot rooms.22m x 10.0m. Roofed with a barrel vault. Walls had 5 glazed windows (3 largest windows were on southern wall, to take advantage of afternoon sun). The windows had a water basin in front of them. Approached by steps Laconica = super heated rooms. Set in 2 chambers either side of the calarium. The floor was raised to allow hot air to circulate underneath. This was the equivalent to our sauna – for people to sweat, open their pores & they would be scraped afterwards. How were the rooms so hot? Caldarium & Laconica Were heated by furnaces directly behind each room, built into the back of the south wall

12. Latrines • Toilets • Located on both sides of the complex. They had marble benches around the 3 walls, on 4th side were statues & niches. Marble benches had key shaped holes cut into them. Sign of the wealth of the city – marble toilets!! And easy to clean. A narrow trough where users washed their ‘toilet paper’ • Toilet paper – sponge on a stick

13. Other features • Apodyteria – changing rooms, either side of the natatio • Colonnaded halls & chambers are on eastern & western sides of the complex. Ther were libraries, rest areas & lecture halls. • Palaestra- exercise yard outside the complex by the natatio. This was a common feature of imperial bath complex • It was covered by a portico of corinthian columns with a large aspe at either end The sky in leptis magna is cooler than our nz sky

14. Key words – flip notes! • Palaestra • Frigidarium • Tepidarium • Caldarium • Laconica • Natitio • Apodyteria • Latrines