Roman Londoners went to the public baths to exercise and get clean, but also to meet friends and socialise. There were three stages to the bathing ritual. Firstly, bathers went into the frigidarium (cold room), then the tepidarium (warm room) and finally into the caldarium (hot room). London’s main baths date from AD 70-200.
An iron strigil (scraper) was used to remove dead skin, and oils and dirt sweated from the pores. Once relaxed and refreshed, the bather would take freshly perfumed oil from a glass bottle and smooth it onto their clean skin. Both items were carried on a belt.
