The Baths of Caracalla are the immense remains of one of ancient Rome’s largest public bath complexes, begun in the early 3rd century and inaugurated in AD 216. Built as a monumental public leisure center, they combined vast hot and cold bathing halls with exercise courts, an open-air swimming pool, gardens, shops, and separate Greek and Latin libraries. Supplied by a special branch aqueduct and richly decorated with marble, mosaics, and sculpture, the baths could hold around 1,600 people at once and served thousands daily free of charge. They remained in use until Rome’s aqueducts were cut in 537, after which the site declined into ruin, quarrying, excavation, and eventual preservation.

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain