Roman Baths, Como, Italy - SpottingHistory.com

Roman thermal baths in Como date back to the 1st century AD. They are situated in a large area (about 1500 square meters). Thanks to a recent renovation, they are now open to the public. Visitors can see finds and recent discoveries with specific explanations and information about the site.

References:

Visit Como

User Reviews

Candace Streib (3 years ago)
So fascinating

Graziano Poletti (3 years ago)
Che Como abbia bisogno di parcheggi come un moribondo dell'ossigeno(..), è una realtà più che evidente ma che si arrivi a nascondere i resti delle terme romane con un a struttura del genere, francamente mi lascia esterrefatto. Ci sono volute decine di anni prima di prendere la sofferta ed inopinata decisione, indipendentemente dal risultato attuale, di ricoprirle, non si sarebbe potuto fare qualcosa di meglio?? Lasciamo perdere le scelte estetiche degli architetti contemporanei, per la maggior parte dei casi squalificati da come hanno "crocefisso" il nostro territorio e l'ambiente urbano in questo caso. Questa è una scelta politica. Per che cosa? Qualche posto auto in più? Claustrofobiche

M C (4 years ago)
Free to visit, friendly & knowledgeable volunteer from the Italian Touring Club and surely worth visiting. Truly recommend!

sergio scotts (5 years ago)
nice place for a visit and photos.

serge schout (5 years ago)
nice place for a visit and photos.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright joiseyshowaa

Historic Site of the week

Broch of Gurness

The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village. Settlement here began sometime between 500 and 200 BC. At the centre of the settlement is a stone tower or broch, which once probably reached a height of around 10 metres. Its interior is divided into sections by upright slabs. The tower features two skins of drystone walls, with stone-floored galleries in between. These are accessed by steps. Stone ledges suggest that there was once an upper storey with a timber floor. The roof would have been thatched, surrounded by a wall walk linked by stairs to the ground floor. The broch features two hearths and a subterranean stone cistern with steps leading down into it. It is thought to have some religious significance, relating to an Iron Age cult of the underground.

The remains of the central tower are up to 3.6 metres high, and the stone walls are up to 4.1 metres thick. The tower was likely inhabited by the principal family or clan of the area but also served as a last resort for the village in case of an attack.

The broch continued to be inhabited while it began to collapse and the original structures were altered. The cistern was filled in and the interior was repartitioned. The ruin visible today reflects this secondary phase of the broch's use.

The site is surrounded by three ditches cut out of the rock with stone ramparts, encircling an area of around 45 metres diameter. The remains of numerous small stone dwellings with small yards and sheds can be found between the inner ditch and the tower. These were built after the tower, but were a part of the settlement's initial conception. A 'main street' connects the outer entrance to the broch. The settlement is the best-preserved of all broch villages.

Pieces of a Roman amphora dating to before 60 AD were found here, lending weight to the record that a 'King of Orkney' submitted to Emperor Claudius at Colchester in 43 AD.

At some point after 100 AD the broch was abandoned and the ditches filled in. It is thought that settlement at the broch continued into the 5th century AD, the period known as Pictish times. By that time the broch was not used anymore and some of its stones were reused to build smaller dwellings on top of the earlier buildings. Until about the 8th century, the site was just a single farmstead.

In the 9th century, a Norse woman was buried at the site in a stone-lined grave with two bronze brooches and a sickle and knife made from iron. Other finds suggest that Norse men were buried here too.

Do you know an ancient castle or magnificent church near you?

Why not share it with other people interested in history? You can add your own historic sites and attractions to SpottingHistory.com.

It's absolutely free, easy, and doesn't even need registration!

Upload data

Roman Baths

Address

Details

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

House of the Dragon Filming Locations

Historic Landmarks of Sicily

Rhodes, The Island of Knights

Historic Site of the week

Broch of Gurness

Looks like you are a history fan!