An Afternoon at the Baths of Caracalla
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 พ.ค. 2024
- The Baths of Caracalla are the best-preserved of Rome's great imperial bath complexes. This video explores their remains, and discusses the shape of a Roman visit to the baths.
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Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
0:42 Typical Roman Baths
2:02 Building the Baths of Caracalla
3:18 Squarespace
4:07 Beginning our visit to the Baths
5:38 Exercising at the Baths
6:42 The Central Hall
8:25 The Caldarium
8:54 The Natatio
9:46 Conclusion
Thanks for watching!
Fascinating. To a Roman in that time, it must’ve been inconceivable that all this grandeur would ever pass away. There’s a lesson there, I think.
Depends on the time. Late Republic, plenty of people had, and wrote about, their anxiety for the state of the Republic and its decline into corruption and nepotism. It was Caesar's publicly claimed motivation for everything he did after Gaul, to save Rome from itself. Then on the other hand men like Cato feared for Rome *because* men like Caesar existed.
@@barahng Hey, kinda sounds like….
Now
"Nothing is constant except change." I think this "lesson" is no mystery.
ELKORCSOSULT SEMMI LETT A VILÁG, MILYENEK A MAI EMBEREK???? SATNYA GYENGE, NULLA, MA CSAK RABSZOLGASÁG VAN, A PÉEPSZNEK SEMMI, 1% -É MINDEN....
@@katalinjuhasz641 I couldn't have said it better.
What a perfect way to spend most afternoons. Art, discussion, fellowship, sports and bathing. There is a lot to learn from that.
And then just that one guys slave watching his crap the whole time looking sad
@@blakelowrey9620
Hey, that's his job assignment. The slave is given free room and board so what's there to complain about?
@@johna.4334 Standing around in the locker room while everyone else has a good time
@@blakelowrey9620 yeah, slavery is bad. But this happened 2000 years ago. It was the norm to have some extra hands working for you if you had the means to feed them.
@@59Lemony I'm not even making a larger point about anything. I'm just imagining the image of the guy bored as fuck in the locker room for 5 hours
for some reason, this structure captures my imagination more than any other in Rome. What a place for a time traveler to visit. Thank you!
The old Penn Station in New York City, savagely demolished by the real estate mafia, was inspired by the Baths of Caracalla.
They were colossal civil engineering projects, adorned with beautiful sculptures and craftsmanship, which served as the epicentre of the daily cultural and social heart of Roman civilisation. Of course they are captivating!
Would definitely be on the visit list if you a time machine.
Aw man now i wish i could go back in time. I'm gonna build a 3D model of this one day if it's the last thing i do
@@Gainn yes, i would spend a day in this bath.
The experience of going to one of these places would be almost magical. Ancient Rome certainly had its problems, and was crowded and dirty, but it also had this. I can imagine exiting these baths and going off to dinner in a private Roman home. For those that could experience it, and thought of it as a norm, it must have been quite a way of life.
especially just ****ing slaves all the time
@@robertsaget6918 what a mature outlook
@@robertsaget6918 that’s a great part of it
@@willfreeman4208 In fairness, they did that. A lot.
@@willfreeman4208 lol
"And the sun set, and the doors were shut, and the great furnaces were banked. But all through the night, year after year, the fountains continued to run, and the trickle of falling water filled the halls of the baths of Caracalla".
This is so beautiful. You're doing such a great job in painting a figure of what it must have been like. Bravo.
Lovely!
I live in North Italy and go for a little vacation in Rome every time I have the chance. It's the most beautiful city I have ever seen: sure It's not perfect and has many problems and living there must not be always easy from what I hear but It's just captured my heart since the first time I went there as a child. The Terme di Caracalla is one of my favourite places: once you enter you can really feel relaxed and at peace because It's so quiet and the noise and chaos of other more famous and crowded parts of the city seem so far.
And that’s not even Prime Rome. Imagine what it looked like in its prime? Oh my goodness.
They, much like us, probably thought that their times would never end. How sad to see such beauty turned to rubble. Great video. Thanks!!
that was a dumb way of thinking. cavemen had 24 -48 hours to find shelter ; before their time would end. lol
@@ChickenMcThiccken wtf are you rambling on?
@@bepinkfloyd814 i think the person i was replying to; deleted their comment. so now im as clueless as you are as to what i replied to originally.
@@ChickenMcThiccken oh Lol now i understand, i thought that you were talking alone like a madman ahaha my bad
Lol "us"
“Despite his many flaws as an emperor and human being, Caracala knew how to motivate construction teams.”
I shudder to think what motivation he used.
@@marciaspiegel5280 I thought the same and hope it was payment🤞🏼
It’s interesting to think about how one day, the last of the patrons visited this bath, and the doors were closed for a final time. How something that was seen as a normal public utility is now seen as a record of history thousands of years later by a distant civilization.
My goodness, that is an enormous complex. It must have been absolutely beautiful 1800 years ago.
I find it amazing that the Roman aqueducts simply kept on working and running all the time. And it is mind-boggling that even today water coming out of the Trevi Fountain runs (at least in part) through the 2,000 year old pipes of the Aqua Virgo.
The architecture and engineering of those buildings are amazing, but they didn't stand for centuries without any maintenance of course.
@@helgaioannidis9365 Of course, maintenance was needed at any given time. But the overall structural integrity of the components used allowed for a longer use than what they use for piping today, at least where I live. Here a main water pipe is required to be completely replaced after 60 years max, if it does not break way before.
@@Mediaevalist their pipes didn't last either. What lasted are structures made of bricks and concrete.
@@helgaioannidis9365 That's what I meant by pipes. :D
@Dio Ego I lived in Rome for many years and saw the pantheon many times. You can see maintenance was done when you look at it from the outside. E.g. they added some pieces of metal to keep things stable.
Miss the great ice cream at gelateria La Palma...
This video is an absolute treasure. Easily the best way to introduce somebody to Roman bathing complexes and really demonstrate the grandeur that they once had.
I can only imagine the splendor of Caracalla's thermae in 230 A.D
Amazing! I was there 35 years ago, for a performance of ''Nabbuko'' by Verdi. That was amazing, too--at night, the background of the baths dramatically lit, the beautiful opera, and the Italian audience crying ''Bravo''! Families with food, many singing along--like no concert I'd ever been to. The baths were etched into my minds eye, and it's wonderful to see them again, and understand something of how they once looked and were used. Thank you!
I saw an opera there too, and, by coincidence, it was the same on, and around the same time. A truly impressive and memorable spectacle. I think I learned recently, maybe even on this channel, that they no longer hold opera performances there. Seems a shame, but I guess it's in the interest of protecting what's left of the building.
I saw baths some years before you,because i was soldier not too far from there and i spent a permission,visiting by foot all the area,i founded it wanderfool and great!
I would cherish that experience for the rest of my life. You are fortunate!!
that sounds like an experience. not quite rome but you got the closest idea of what it was like back then with that.
The Three Tenors (Carreras, Domingo and Pavarotti) also had their first concert there-
This was one of the best buildings in history. A cathedral of marble and water. So sad that it was destroyed, but all the best stuff gets knackered.
The only reason the shell is still standing is that it’s too strong to be demolished.
It would cost billions in today’s money to build something like this, bearing in mind that 1 block of marble (half the size of a small car) costs 1 million Euros.
However marvelous this building is, it is nothing compared to the things we can build now. An aircraft carrier, the ISS to name a few, Rovers on Mars.
@@ericvosselmans5657
But the things we build today (buildings for example) are not beautiful but rather grotesque when compared with buildings of ancient Rome.
@@johna.4334 there are many contemporary buildings in Neo-Classical Style as well which would have awed the roman emperors. The U.S. Capitol for one. But there are so many others
@@ericvosselmans5657 US government buildings and many others look so much like the buildings in imperial Rome !
@@jamessmythe1891 Yes!
Out of all the massive construction projects by the Romans the baths are by far some of the most impressive. They stand as a stark contrast to what life was like in this period. A place where everyone is clean and relaxing and playing sports. The activities in this structure is something every person who has ever lived can relate to. Unlike places like the coliseum or palaces, we know what it's like to sit in a hot bath or go for a swim in the pool. It's so much easier to imagine what experiencing this building was like.
It's a giant hotspring bathhouse with attached gym and library, and also a snack and tea joint.
We have stuff like this today in some private sports clubs and resorts.
I was lucky enough to visit during 2021 - i was the only one on the premises, had the whole complex for myself !
One feature that amazed me was this Roman board game carved into the marble step of one of the numerous pools. It even had some graffiti next to it, reading : ‘You do not know, you cry, you move, you will be careful’.
Crazy to think that its so close to the palatine hill yet fewer people choose to visit.
Excellent, I stumbled on the Diocletian baths in Rome in 2015, I didn't know they even existed until then. I had already visited the church a few days earlier, the scale of the place is unbelievable. They did things properly in those days.
Same for me!
The last verse hit me like a bag of bricks. It's so poetic...
What a truly wonderful city it must have been. Even in ruins, you can still see Rome's majesty.
That’s so fascinating that even with all the things that were so segmented by class and status in Roman society, the baths were a common space where all were welcome and could afford to go daily.
Slaves no..........
True lol@@sigridqwq5198
I'm a little hesitant on the olive oil thing.
Roman baths are my favorite micro subject within Ancient Rome. Have your book on audible and really appreciate ya. Much love from Philadelphia
I know very well the Caracalla baths as I was always passing by when going home. The ruins are still enormous and mind-boggling if you stop to try to imagine how it was looking once centuries ago. Curiously I never been able to visit inside for a reason or another. Unfortunately I don't live in Rome anymore. Thanks for sharing this very interesting video 👍👍
I grew up in ancient Rome. I remember going to swim there when I was younger
Thank heavens, at last, for an American accented but un-assuming, un-exclamatory voice-over. And a very good video too.
This has grown to become one of my favorite channels, that melds the line between academia and pure curiosity of how early civilizations functioned.
I've had years of visiting a hot spring called Harbin on Northern CA.
It was as close to a Roman set up as I could imagine in the modern era. Clothing optional, there was a warm quiet large bath for meditation. Up winding stone stairs there was the cold plunge, best done first. Fresh flowers adorned an altar to a Goddess of Mercy. All was to be silent, except for a bell to chime after completing the hot plunge back down the stairs. Being numb from the icy water really helped to bear the scalding heat of THIS bath. One could do 3-7 rounds between the two, and either lay on a bench to rest in the shade, or lay in the sun.
A larger heart shaped pool was used to talk quietly in warm water, while those seeking to swim laps, could dive into the long cooler pool.
Massage of all types could be had, including watsu, a type of swirling hypnotic healing treatment done in the warm quiet pool.
I enjoyed camping, taking a room and eating organic food at the restaurant. Once, I stayed an entire month, hanging out with Hanuman Dass, a holy man I was asked to help.
Sometimes we had Sufi heart dances at night, or long talks at the smoking bench. It was idealic. Wild deer and sometimes turkeys would pass by. Sometimes they hosted festivals and being Pagan, were wild and joyful with music, drumming and ritual.
It burned completely to the ground during one of our great fires. A whole community was traumatized.
It's finally up and running again. I want to remember it as it was.
I can totally relate to those Romans!
Thank you for your vivid recollection. Felt as though I was there. Very enjoyable reading.
What a beautiful experience! Thank you for sharing! ✌🏻🙂✌🏻
Clothing optional? No thanks.
Visited yesterday. Absolutely awe-inspiring in size, and the grounds are so peaceful and lovely to stroll.
Finally a new video, waiting every friday for this! I finally got hold of your book in Germany, like it a lot. One of the most entertaining history books I read until now. I think the depth of your answers does perfectly hit the right amount of Information to be easy to read. I also like you style, which is valid on youtube as well. Some youtube historians talk half an hour and I do habe the feeling to get only half-knowledge. In your videos and your book I feel like getting a dense collection of facts
I'm very glad you're enjoying the book. Thanks for the kind words!
@@toldinstone convinced me to buy it! Enjoying all the videos so much.
You can imagine how stunning this place must have been in it's day.
I have been to the ruins ( a nice walk through Rome ) and they are massive! It must have been a breathtaking place at the time.
To thinking that bathing in such an architectural and philosophical wonder was considered free two millenniums ago is such a jaw dropping thought.
The Baths seemed like an ultimate ancient Rome spa! Wish I could see a computer generated recreation of walking through the Baths as it looked shortly after it was built.
Mate, you have a certain way to tell a story and excite the imagination... I turned this 10 min video into a 30 min adventure by pausing at every part of the fantastic huge ruins and imagining what it must have looked like with the columns and the marble walls, the mosaics and fountains gushing out of hte walls, the miriad of statues of ancient heroes and the vastness of the entire thing... Ty for also finding those drawings and showing us a mere glimpse of what it must have looked like in its glory days. I am still awe struck after its over and am still far away with my mind, imagining myself a simple merchant going for a bath and meeting my merchant friends there as i walk the majestic halls of the Caracalla wonder for the first time...
Now i understand the sense of wonder Piranesi must have felt when he spent days sketching and drawing these ruins for his copper etchings.
Thank you!
Excellent as always. A tour group would be lucky to have you as a guide.
This is the best presentation of this subject I've seen, bar none. Great narration. The viewer has a (very important) sense of the location in the walk through, and you provide context, what daily life was like in Rome for the different classes of people. Good use of the wide angle (and 4k)? Wouldn't mind if some of your videos were longer and more in depth. Keep up the good work!
The measured drawing at 7:50 is actually of the Baths of Diocletian, made by students of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts under their professor, Edmond Paulin. The modern space also appears at 1:44. This picture has often been misidentified as the Baths of Caracalla. It influenced the design of Pennsylvania Station in New York City and many other railway stations.
I cannot even begin to express how much I love your videos.
I echo another comment here: this was likely the most expensive building in the world at the time, and would be so today. That much marble and mosaic would be an inconceivable expense. The Baths certainly ensured that a violent, unintelligent Emperor's name would live forever. I can't even imagine such a sight. Three other buildings I'd have love to have seen: the Emperor's Palace on the Palantine Hill (pre-looting, of course), the Colosseum (when brand new), and Nero's Palace. In fact, we get the word "palace" from the famous Executive Mansion on the Palantine.
Amazing history and buildings! Went to Turkey and saw similar beautiful buildings! A memory to treasure!
These illustrations bring to mind the astonishing Pennsylvania Station (1910-1963) .
Been waiting for each of your videos since they all take you so profoundly well back in time ! Always great storytelling, thanks !
Wonderfully described…… your description clothed and animated the ruins, it must have been a beautiful place in its day.
Thank you. ❤
Fascinating to see what remains! The original NY.C Penn Station of 1910 in Manhattan , was based on Caracalla, two great losses. 😣As a teenager I had at least one privileged time to be at Penn Station, singing for holiday in our school choir., on the grand staircase.It’s a gift to see the original inspiration .
I was going to make a naked gladiators joke but for real this place sounds incredible. It would almost be a perfect setting for a level in Playstation era Spyro.
Looks like a great place to relax and spend the day! Great video, as usual!
These videos are always so relaxing and satisfying to listen to the stories 👌
Loved this one, thanks! Had the privilege of strolling trough these ruins a few years back. Definitely one of the most impressive roman structures I have seen!
Your narration sets a wonderful stage- what a fabulous experience- how neat it would have been to enjoy such a place. Thanks for taking us there
Pennsylvania Station in New York was heavily inspired by the Baths of Caracalla. A shame it was destroyed before it could be saved.
I didn’t know that about Penn Station and though I never saw it before it was razed, I’m very sorry that it was! Thanks for that info
A shame all right, but I look at it this way, Pennsylvania Station died so Grand Central Terminal could live. The demolition of Penn Station was a shocking wake-up call that sparked the urban preservation movement here in the US. Trust me, there were those who would have liked to see GCT gone as well. People with cash registers where their hearts should be.
@@wayneantoniazzi2706 Even for a financial point of view, the car-centric suburban craze of the USA is ridiculous. Not that my Brazil is immune to that either, of course.
@@Thelaretus Car-centricity had less to do with the demise of long-distance train travel than affordable air travel did. Air travel sold speed, speed that the trains couldn't match.
Commuter trains survived, but only with government subsidy and eventually government take-over. The railroads couldn't make money on commuter traffic, in fact they had to operate it at a loss.
Add the fact that railroads in the US being a private enterprise, they had to pay real estate taxes on the roadbeds, in addition to all their other structures.
The deck was heavily stacked against American railroads 60 years ago.
@@Thelaretus ford made it possible to the average man to buy a new car.
The autobahn inspired eisenhower to build an american freeway system in the case of invasion and war. So he demanded funds to build and so it was.
Then it became the mission of the usa government to give every man his own home.
The easiest way to do that was to build cheap housing in the farms and forests outside the cities. Which thanks to the new freeways. They were now easily accessible.
It made sense at the time. They didnt know better. They thought car centric and giving every man a home and garden was the best possible future.
The crazy part was that the usa was so rich. That they actually did it.
I could really imagine the bath house experience, thanks to your excellent guiding. It was a bit like an enormous YMCA! In this particular way, I think the ancient Romans were more civilized than us.
Yeah, I'll bet it was similar to the YMCA, wrestling, towel snapping, trying to persuade young men into having sex.
I really enjoy the angle you take with it, as if you're really going to go and experience it. The way you engage the audience is why your videos have so much charm. I've learned more about Ancient Rome in 3 days from you, than any other source!
A well written narration. Well delivered. Cheers.
I’ve been fortunate to visit Rome a few times. Your videos have really opened my eyes and mind to understanding what I’ve seen. Thank you !
a beautiful and comprehensive video! thank you! I've been to the baths and I agree, even stripped of their marble, they're spectacular ❤️
That was magnificent and I love how you ended it in such detail as if it was coming back to life if only in my mind00
What a fabulous video. You really know how to make history come alive! Thank you.
What a coincidence. I just bought your book because I’m going to NYC next week and I wanted something fun to read about Ancient Rome and now I just discovered this video. I think I’ll enjoy it without a doubt. Thanks.
this was a wonderful video, and a glimpse into the everyday life of people living in rome. i love seeing these brief vignettes into what life was like. i think that it's pretty cool that magnificent structures like these were open to anyone of any class, and that there were so many different ways to spend your time here.
Of all the advantages of concrete, this is the first time I realized the facet that it can't be taken down and reused elsewhere with any efficiency is a plus for those of us interested in history.
Nothing beats the left-over ruins of forgotten times like this. I wandered the streets of Ostia Antica last summer on a regular workday in September. Blistering 40c heat and maybe 6 to 10 people in the whole vicinity. I stopped and sat on the stairs of the old citadel in the evening and watched the sun slowly set. I watched the orange glow spreading over the ruined streets and buildings and could vividly imagine people bustling about the streets in front of me, people going home after work, on their way to the baths or perhaps some of them lighting the street lantarns for the night. The enormity of it all made a deep impression on me and even void of human life I could feel the energy that lingered of an ancient time.
It was refreshing to visit Ostia after having spend some days in the centre of Rome, standing in line with thousands of other tourists just to visit the Forum or Colosseum for strictly an hour. I can recommend anyone to visit places like Ostia Antica or the Villa Adriana at Tivoli. These are the ruins of ancient Rome everyone should see.
This is exactly the kind of video I've been waiting for!
Came back just to give it a like. Your content is amazing. You paint a vivid window into the past. Awesome 👍
Love your videos
Great video! Thanks!
Very excited to go here when I visit Italy again!
Your description of the location caused me to be struck by a strong sense of scale, awe inspiring stuff. Thank you!
That was amazing ! thank you for literally taking me back in time !
Thank you for the video. Most appreciated. Just a suggestion - it would be wonderful if you could possibly add photos of the one column that was taken to Florence and the tubs in front of the Palazzo Farnese.
Does anyone else get a theme park vibe from this place? The fabulous amenities and theming but also the crowds and the pilfering? Anyone? Just me?
A good location for this theme park would be Las Vegas, NV
Italian government should rebuild it to exact details at a nearby location
@@jamessmythe1891
Thing is, there is no "nearby location"; Rome is a crowded, congested city. Best to rebuild the existing monument to the way it was using donated funds.
Hey man your videos are awesome and i enjoy learning a lot from your calming voice.
GREAT VIDEO, MUCH LOVE!
My very favorite monument in Rome. The scale is mind boggling. And it’s almost always quiet. Thank you for the virtual tour sir.
If a future me would hand me an almanac with financial market info in 1980 and I’d have bought Microsoft, yahoo, bitcoins, Tesla AMD and what not, all at the right time, this would be my first reconstruction project. (Circus Maximus is second)
MBS spent 450m USD on a gaudy French fake chateau. If MBS is reading TH-cam comments, sir, with your kind of money, could you rebuild this in Italy please? I’d be most obliged. I may even watch the GP as a curtesy this weekend if confirm before Sunday.
An outstanding , fixating presentation. Informative and time-era transportational !
Great coverage of an interesting subject.
Imagine being a Roman senator suddenly whisked away into the 21st century to gaze upon what remains of his civilization
I guess that’s one of the few perks of being mortal. You don’t get to witness the things you love perish
Nice segueway from building the baths of Caracalla to building a website with Squarespace!
Outstanding video - as usual.
This is something we need to bring back into Society roman baths.
We are privileged, we have bathrooms in each house (most of us in western cultures), with running cold and hot clean water, residual waters are treated, and you can walk the streets without fear. If you go to places where living conditions are similar to those Romans had you will understand their reality.
Your videos are wonderful, thank you.
Another gem, thank you.
and then...slowly...at some point, the fountains stopped giving water...forever. The end of Rome really fascinates me. It is all silent now.
Beautiful ending
A very enjoyable video! Thank you.
Great! I almost felt like I was there, and I loved the colorful conclusion.
This was one of the most impressive sites I visited in Rome. The scale as you walk around is stunning. And the thought that the baths were in use for over 300 years is mind boggling. If you have the chance to see it don't pass it up.
Appreciate your content
Enjoyed this video! 🕊❤🕊
My GF and I had a picnic there and spent the entire afternoon enjoying this amazing building. There was no one there at the time which made it even more of a precious moment. My first degree is Ancient Art and Archaeology, hence, I knew some of the history behind the Baths. It is HUGE!
This really helps to visualize the space.
Great video
Great video as always Garrett! I hope that you make a video about the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri someday!
your videos provide a humanity to the otherwise bland description of roman life i was taught in school. the angle you offer on this channel spurs my imagination!! and i feel as though i am there myself
Ah the magnificient baths. Every summer they are used for Opera concerts at night. If you happen to be in Rome i advise you to attend one of such concerts, it's a magical experience.
Would love to see video(s) on ancient influence on Renaissance artistists especially Raphael as he was appointed by Pope Chief Archeologist. He loved the ruins as were so many others. Thank you for these wonderful videos!
I’m at the site of the Baths of Caracalla right now and don’t want to pay for the 4D electronic tour so I watch this exemplary video instead, it’s magnificent
Thank You for knowledge
Wow incredible !!
Very interesting thank you for showing us this amazing video well done 👍
Caracall is one of my favorite emperors to read about
Video ben fatto, complimenti !!!
great video! enjoy it much!