Laconicums
Laconicums are a class of dry-heat rooms found in ancient Roman bath complexes, designed for intense perspiration and cleansing. The term derives from Latin laconicum, a word used in antiquity to denote a hot, enclosed space used for sweating, and is closely associated with the spa-like architecture of Roman thermae.
Laconicums were typically heated by a hypocaust system, with hot air and smoke circulating beneath a raised
In the sequence of a Roman bath, the laconicum served as a dry-heat counterpart to the more
Historical context and evidence
Laconicums appear in surviving literary references and in archaeological remains across the Roman world, with numerous
Roman baths, caldarium, tepidarium, hypocaust.
Scholarly discussions of Roman bath architecture and hypocaust heating provide context for laconicums, including archaeological reports