Barbara Baths

The Barbara Baths in Trier (Augusta Treverorum ), the Roman bath complex with the largest floor area, which was built north of the Alps.

Since 1986, the Barbara Baths are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Roman Monuments, Cathedral and Church of Our Lady in Trier.

Architectural History

The Barbara Baths were built in the second half of the 2nd century AD. At this time the bath complex was the old cattle market probably become too small for the growing urban population. The spa had the time of origin dimensions of 172 x 240 m ( 42,500 m²). So you covered two blocks of flats as well as a road. The water supply of the baths was carried out by the Ruwerwasserleitung.

The enormous building program can only be explained as a state- funded project. At the time of their creation, the Barbara Baths were the second largest thermal baths in the Roman Empire, only the Baths of Trajan in Rome were greater from the surface.

The German invasions of the third century survived the thermal baths apparently without major damage. Coins and pottery finds attest to a use until the end of the 4th century. The company was set up with the destruction of Trier at the beginning of the 5th century. Conversions for residential purposes are apparent, which are interpreted as the beginning of the suburb of St. Barbara.

Later used

The size of the system has resulted in the post-Roman period to various uses. In addition to the use as a quarry different installations of buildings can be detected. Early Christian grave inscriptions point to a church, may already be in the Merovingian period, down. In the 11th century, a Ministerialengeschlecht named after nearby bridge de Ponte. On this many medieval fortified internals are likely to be due, which can be seen on the city view from Matthäus Merian and a drawing by Alexandre Wiltheim around 1620 as a ruin. These two are the only detailed drawings of the building, and also the last: from 1611 served the Barbarathermen as a quarry for the construction of the Jesuit College, the leftover remnants blew up in 1675 the French general Vignory in the war of conquest of the French King Louis XIV, to within to create the city of Trier, for tactical reasons, a free field.

The name of the baths goes back to the parish church of St. Barbara. Other church buildings could have also been on the big Thermengelände outside the medieval town walls. The site of the church of St. Maria ad Pontem is largely unknown because it was blown up in 1675 by French troops. At this time the ruthless handling of the ancient legacies had, however, already a certain tradition. Already Emperor Maximilian I had the still upright parts of the building of the baths during the Trier Reichstag in 1512 for testing purposes bombard cannons.

Today's state

Since 2000 the plant for visitors is locked to restore the ruins. There are new ways to be found to present it to visitors. Parts of the plant are visible from the street, an information platform informs about the spas and the ongoing work.

Plant

This spa building with a size of 172 × 96 m was planned along a line running from north to south axis, with the corresponding bath wings almost mirror equal to its east and west sides. The long ridge to the north entrance was preceded by the palaestra, and was bordered by a portico.

Several niches and vestibules on the north side correspond to smaller cold pool on the inside. A south because subsequent larger room had a groin vault. This is linked to the central Laubad ( tepidarium ) followed, in the case of Barbarathermen a cross-shaped, hypokaustierter room. The hot bath ( caldarium ) with a size of 20 × 30 m sprang far from the Southern Facade. Along the walls were with pillars and columns indented niches, the rectangular pool and two boiler rooms contained. From the Southern Facade sticking two large tubs (13 × 23 m) out in the form of apses. These were accessible via covered walkways.

The plan, which many high buildings and between lower links had, was designed so that all rooms were of natural light and easy to ventilate were. The numerous apses are a very typical design of the advanced second century AD The layout of the Barbarathermen is very similar to the Hadrianic Baths of Leptis Magna on.