Terme romane di Chieti

Chieti's Roman baths, dating to the second century AD, preserve a sequence of rooms that reveals the building's heating and water systems. The remains include a corridor, an atrium with a Neptune mosaic, hot rooms raised on suspensurae and semicircular pools associated with the frigidarium.

Why it matters

The baths offer a view of the social and technical infrastructure of Roman Teate. Their layout makes the sequence from entrance to bathing rooms legible, while mosaics and traces of marble revetment preserve elements of the building's decoration.

What to notice

The entrance staircase led to an oblique corridor paved with a black-cross mosaic on a white ground. The columned atrium has a mosaic depicting Neptune. Three halls rest on suspensurae, the small supports that allowed hot air to circulate beneath the floor. Opposite the atrium are semicircular pools with traces of marble facing, including the larger basin associated with the frigidarium. A nearby cistern of nine interconnected chambers formed part of the water system.

Context and history

The complex served the residents of Teate in the second century AD. Ground instability caused the eastern section to collapse. The baths form part of Chieti's archaeological heritage and are interpreted alongside the city's Roman theatre and amphitheatre; models of the bathing complex are also presented at the La Civitella museum.