Traditional Bath Houses
Bathhouses have been around for more than two millennium. The oldest Roman bathhouse was built in the 4th century A.D. and is preserved today in the volcanic ash of Pompeii. Japanese bathhouses were less elaborate in style but equally valued by the citizens. Turkey and Islamic Muslim countries adopted the bathhouse tradition after exposure to Japanese and Roman culture. Bathhouses can be found around the world today, and some of the ancient bathhouses in Russia, Turkey and Japan continue to thrive in the modern age.
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Japanese
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The Japanese erected bathhouses centuries ago as a method of physical cleansing, spiritual purification and relaxation. Japanese bathhouses were communal, coed facilities with large, deep pools and saunas constructed from wood. In the 19th century, the rules changed and separate pools and entrances for men and women were required. Japanese bathhouses can be found around the world today, most offering additional services like acupuncture, shiatsu massage and cocktail lounges.
Roman
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Roman, Greek and Egyptian bathhouses were very large and elaborate. Men and women alike would go to the bathhouses to conduct business, eat, drink, play and chat with friends. Some Roman bathhouses had gyms, theaters, art galleries, lecture halls and private rooms for discrete liaisons. Separate rooms were built to accommodate different temperatures in air and water. Tepid rooms, steaming hot rooms and cold rooms were often entered in sequence to invigorate the body. Roman bathhouses were usually expensively decorated with sculpture, carvings and other art and could accommodate up to 6,000 people at a time. The bathhouses were also staffed with experienced healers, and wounded soldiers often sought reprieve and healing in a bathhouse before returning to everyday life. Romans viewed bathing as a form of entertainment and a way to stay healthy, while the Greeks generally bathed merely to cleanse themselves after a day's work or before an important function.
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Turkish
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Turkish bathhouses were the first to implement steam baths, very hot baths which are still known today as Turkish Baths, also called "Hamam." Turkish bathhouses were elaborately outfitted with luxurious, hand-made Turkish rugs and tapestries, intricately carved columns and fixtures of brass, silver and gold. Everyone, regardless of sex, status or wealth, used the bathhouses to cleanse, purify and celebrate important occasions. Turkish Baths are popular across the globe today, with perhaps the world's oldest Turkish bathhouse still operational in Istanbul. Hot tubs and Jacuzzi spas are modern adaptations of ancient Turkish Baths.
Muslim
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Muslims built bathhouses which they used for prayer, meditation and relaxation. Muslims adopted the bathhouse tradition from a mixture of Eastern and Roman influences. Muslim people traditionally used the bathhouses for cleansing before worshipping at the mosque, so many bathhouses were conveniently placed near the mosques. Muslim bathhouses are typically more minimal in style, like Japanese bathhouses, but designed with several rooms of different temperatures like those of the Roman Baths.
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References
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