Central Baths, Pompei

The Central Baths are located on the corner of two main streets in Pompeii: Stabian Street and Nola Street. They were built as part of the city’s regeneration plans following the earthquake of AD 62, and may have replaced a destroyed building on this site. The relative modernity of the building is shown in the use of large windows that let in natural light, skylights, and an expansive outdoor gymnasium — hallmarks of later imperial Roman bathhouses.

The baths were designed with many of the features found in advanced Roman bathhouses. Unlike older complexes, they abandoned separate quarters for men and women in favour of a single, unified sequence of grand spaces. They included a large central exercise complex, with an adjacent changing room. The indoor bathing route consisted of a warm, humid room in the tepidarium and hot baths in the caldarium, while a cold plunge was moved outdoors to a large open-air swimming pool. One unusual feature was the laconicum, a room with intense, dry heat — similar to the modern sauna, which is thought to have originated in Scandinavia.

Built with access from all four sides, the baths occupied an entire block of the city. The presence of a new bathhouse, designed to be ultra-modern and exquisitely decorated, suggests that the surrounding area was intended to become more central in the regeneration of Pompeii. Sadly, it appears the baths were never used: many of the pools and walls were still incomplete and missing their marble finishes at the time of the eruption of Vesuvius.