Bed - Breakfast - Bath - Bristol - Self Catering - B&B
Box Hedge Farm Bed and Breakfast
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The Roman Baths is one of the best preserved Roman sites north of the Alps.
Adjacent to the hot springs that feed the Baths there was a major temple
dedicated to the goddess Sulis Minerva. In Roman times people came to worship
and 
pray
to the goddess when seeking a cure for their ailments, before immersing
themselves in the sacred waters that flowed through the suite of baths. On the
terrace overlooking the Great Bath are carved statues of Roman emperors and governors
of Roman Britain. When the weather is fine the terrace overlooking the largest
of the Roman Baths is open and gives you a bird's eye view of the bath below.
From this vantage point you can also
appreciate
how much the site extends underground beyond the limits of the present day
buildings on the surface. The Bath in the picture on the left is less than
quarter of the site,
which visitors can see from three different levels. The sacred spring (on the
right) is a special place where 1,170,000 litres of hot mineral water rise each
day at a temperature of 46 degrees centigrade. In Roman times a phenomenon such
as this was beyond human understanding and so was clearly the work of the Gods.
Water from the sacred spring fed through a narrow channel to the Roman Baths and
entered the Great Bath beneath a diving stone. Water was drawn from the top of
the 
spring,
which the Romans had enclosed to make a reservoir. This ensured that water
entering the baths was free of sediment churned up by the great volume of rising
water.
Surplus hot water, not needed for the Roman Baths, flows out into a Roman drain
that takes it to the River Avon a few hundred metres away. The arch and the
drain are perfectly preserved and still function nearly 2,000 years after they
were built. No visit to the Roman Baths is complete without a taste of the
famous hot spa water. It can only be sampled at the spa fountain in the Grand
Pump 
Room
which looks out over the Sacred Spring and Roman Baths.
The Grand Pump Room is the perfect place to end a visit to the Roman Baths with
either lunch or afternoon tea. Telephone: 01225
477785