Overview

The project will be hosted by the University of Bologna's Department of History and Cultures, supervised by Prof. Isabella Baldini, a leading scholar in Late Antique archaeology. It aims to investigate the decline of Roman public baths (balnea, in Latin).

Baths held a crucial role in fostering sociability, being accessible to all social classes, thus becoming integral components of urban landscapes. While their decline during Late Antiquity is often attributed to cultural shifts tied to the rise of Christianity, the research aims to uncover environmental and economic factors that contributed to this decline.

The study will chiefly concentrate on spatial volume of the thermal bath’s rooms, the energy consumption required for their heating, and the production cycle for procuring fuel materials within specific ecological settings.

Sicily was chosen as a case study due to the context comparable with other Mediterranean regions and the wealth of thermal complexes unearthed, a suitable number within the 3-year MSCA-PF.

Methodologically, the research will first rely on the available scientific literature on the topic. Subsequently, drawing upon the researcher’s background as an architect, they will delve into the technical and stylistic aspects of energy-efficient practices in designing ancient buildings, utilizing technologies such as surveying, 3D reconstruction, and simulations. The archaeological remains will be analysed through the creation of digital models to reconstruct their structural characteristics and operational system performance. To acquire the latest survey and 3D reconstruction technologies, the researcher will conduct the Outgoing phase at the ‘Institute for Digital Exploration’ at the University of South Florida, directed by Prof. Davide Tanasi. Additionally, during a Secondment at the University of Catania’s ‘Energy Sustainability & Environmental Control Laboratory’, guided by Prof. Francesco Nocera, they will assess energy efficiency and economic sustainability in ancient buildings.