Pompeii, the ancient Roman city buried in ash and lava in AD 79, has discovered a new treasure – a private bathhouse built 2,000 years ago, decorated with lavish mosaics and equipped with a series of spa-style hot, warm and cold rooms.
“We have here probably the largest thermal complex in a private house in Pompeii,” said Gabriel Zuchtriegel, director of the archaeological park in Pompeii. “Members of the ruling class of Pompeii created huge spaces in their homes where banquets could be held.
“They fulfilled the function of creating consensus, promoting the election campaign, concluding transactions. It was an opportunity to show the wealth in which they lived, as well as to have a nice thermal treatment,” he said.
The baths were discovered in the so-called Regio IX, a large, central area of the Pompeii park, still unexplored, where major archaeological excavations are revealing new aspects of Pompey's daily life.
Zuchtriegel said the layout resembles scenes from a Roman novel Satyrykonwhere banquets and baths were central to the display of wealth and status.
Excavations in Pompeii revealed one of the largest private bath complexes in the city, which was destroyed by the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. The complex consists of a private residence connected to a banquet hall, as well as a private bathroom.
Recently, archaeologists working in the same area found a bakery, a laundry, two villas and the bones of three people who died during the eruption of the Vesuvius volcano, which destroyed the ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.
At the time of the eruption, Pompeii had a population of approximately 13,000 people. The ruins of the city lie approximately 23 km southeast of Naples, and excavations over the years have uncovered the remains of over 1,000 victims.
The remains of two people were found during the excavations
Photos from the excavation site show dusty walls decorated with colored stripes or blocks of red, black or yellow, and a large rectangular sink with what appear to be curved stone steps or seats in the corner of the tub itself.
Zuchtriegel said that wealthy residents of Pompeii often took a bath first and then held a banquet, so the private spa complex allowed them to do it in the same house.
“There is room for about 30 people to do the entire procedure and it can also be done in public baths. So there is a calidarium, a very warm environment, and a large bathtub with cold water,” he said.
The private residence with a bathhouse held yet another discovery for archaeologists: the remains of two people, a woman aged 35 to 50 clutching jewelry and coins, and a younger man.