Terracotta spacers from the bathhouse at Amorium

Abstract

This article discusses the various ways in which the hot {caldarium) and warm (tepidariurri) rooms of Roman and Byzantine bathhouses were provided with a wall heating system to complement the underfloor or hypocaust system. Several different methods were devised to create cavities in the walls through which hot air could rise. In some cases a combination of the different methods was used. One of the longest-lasting and widespread methods involved the use of terracotta spacers -small hollow terracotta tubes that were placed as wedges between the main outer wall and the inner revetted wall surface. At Amorium in Phrygia excavations of a small public bathhouse, dating to the sixth-ninth centuries AD, have brought to light a large number of these spacers, together with a few examples of much simpler spacers made out of re-used tile. Examples of both types are described in detail in an accompanying catalogue. OzetBu c,ali §mada, hypocaust olarak bilinen yerden lsitma sistemi dahilinde lsitilan Roma ve Bizans hamamlannin, sicaklik {caldarium) ve llikhk {tepidariurri) mekanlanmn, bu sisteme bagh olarak duvarlardan da lsitilmalarmin c,e §itli tiirleri konu edilmi §tir. Zaman igersinde hamamlan duvarlardan lsitmamn bir 50k degigik teknigi kullanilmi §tir. Bunlardan en 50k tercih edileni ve en uzun sure kullamlani, terracotta spacer sistemi olarak bilinen kiigiik, igi bo § pi §mi § toprak tiiplerin duvar ve mermer siislemeler arasina girerek yapiyi duvarlardan lsitmaya yardimci sistemdir. Phrygia bolgesinin onemli kentlerinden biri olan Amorium 'da yapilan kazilar sonrasi M.S. 6. ve 9. yiizyillara tarihlenen kiic.uk halk tipi bir hamam agiga c,ikanrmi §tir. Bu hamamin kazilan esnasinda ele gegen bir kag adet ikinci kullanim tugla yaninda 50k sayidaki pi §mi § toprak obje konu ile ilgili olarak yeni bilgiler ortaya koymaktadir. Bu buluntular §ahs,ma icerisinde tip ve ozellikleri bakimmdan katalogda detayli olarak ele alinmi §lardir.

Thermal Sustainability: Renovation of Imperial Thermae in Late Antiquity

“…Diverse wall-heating systems were used for vertical convection in Roman baths (Yegül 1992: 364;Adam 2005: 557-61;Koçyigit 2006;Graciani 2009: 721-28). In terms of resource management, the rate at which heated gas would be drawn through the walls was directionally proportional to the thickness of the wall cavities; if the cavities were narrowed, the overall cost of fuel would be Two heating systems are found curiously overlaid in situ in the Hadrianic Summer Baths at Aphrodisias: tubuli in two sizes and clamped terracotta plaques (Figure 8).…”

An Evaluation Of Heating Technology In Anatolian Seljuk Period Hospitals (Darüşşifa)

“…There are many other studies on heating and cooking practices in the ancient world (Wilkinson, 1944;Yegül, 1992, 358-90;Koçyiğit, 2006;Leonard, 1973;Ball and Taschek, 2007;Sparkers, 1962;Zhuang et al, 2009;Bong and Jeong, 2003), yet only the exemplary ones are cited here.…”