Temple of Sulis

Also known as:
Aquae Sulis, Bath Spa and Temple of Sulis Minerva
Nearest town:
Bath (1km S)
OS reference:
ST751647
OS sheet:
172
Latitude:
51° 22' 48.93 N
Longitude:
2° 21' 28.16 W
Added to TMA by

Images

Image of Temple of Sulis (Sacred Well) by RiotGibbon

the overflow from the spring pool ... a wild, elemental place, like descending into the bowels of the earth ...

R
RiotGibbon Nov 13, 2001

Articles

Temple of Sulis

Sacred spring set to heat up medieval Abbey

Chance
Chance Apr 12, 2015

In a world heritage fist, the ancient goddess Sulis may be called upon to warm today’s true believers using Bath Abbey.

Although the Abbey was granted planning permission for this unique £18 million scheme two years ago, this month, engineers have begun to explore the ancient Roman drain that runs beside the Abbey. At present, the drain empties 850,000 litres of natural spring water every day into the River Avon. They hope to divert the warm water instead through a network of underground pipes to provide a world-first natural under floor heating system for the abbey. Church leaders believe the plans would provide a unique source of green energy for the abbey and help the 10th century building reconnect with the city’s ancient roots.

The Bath springs are the warmest geothermal springs found in the UK. The water which bubbles up from the ground at Bath falls as rain on the nearby Mendip Hills. It percolates down through limestone aquifers to a depth of between 2,700 and 4,300 metres (8,900 and 14,100 ft) where geothermal energy raises the water temperature to between 64 and 96 °C (147.2 and 204.8 °F). Under pressure, the heated water rises to the surface along fissures and faults in the limestone. This process is similar to an artificial one known as Enhanced Geothermal System which also makes use of the high pressures and temperatures below the Earth’s crust. Hot water at a temperature of 46 °C (114.8 °F) rises here at the rate of 1,170,000 litres (257,364 imp gal) every day, from a geological fault (the Pennyquick fault).

The first shrine at the site of the hot springs was built by Celts, and was dedicated to the goddess Sulis, whom the Romans identified with Minerva. Geoffrey of Monmouth in his largely fictional Historia Regum Britanniae describes how in 836 BC the spring was discovered by the British king Bladud who built the first baths. Early in the 18th century Geoffrey’s obscure legend was given great prominence as a royal endorsement of the waters’ qualities, with the embellishment that the spring had cured Bladud and his herd of pigs of leprosy through wallowing in the warm mud.

In the middle of the 20th century, the city’s swimming pool sourced its water directly from the King’s Spring through one of three pipelines beneath the River Avon. However, the old municipal hot pools were closed in 1978 after the discovery of an infectious organism in one stratum of the aquifer. After that date, bathing was prohibited. In 1983 a new spa water bore-hole was sunk, providing a clean and safe supply of spa water for drinking in the Pump Room.

dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3030124/Bath-Abbey-benefit-ancient-Roman-plumbing-Engineers-tap-thermal-springs-provide-underfloor-heating.html

Temple of Sulis

C
CARL Jun 16, 2010

Visited 14.2.2007.
Bath is a lovely place to visit if you have never been and the Roman Baths are a ‘must see’. As Rhiannon says, despite lots of tourists, there are some areas of the Baths which are very quiet and peaceful. I know the Romans are not everyone’s cup of tea who may be reading this but don’t let that put you off. Visit and enjoy!

Temple of Sulis

Rhiannon
Rhiannon Nov 28, 2002

Don’t dismiss this as a purely Roman experience (though that’s fascinating in itself – heretic) – it really gets your imagination fired up and you can conjure up something of the place before the Romans arrived.

The ‘Sacred Spring’ bubbles away in its blue-green pool, and mist floats eerily over the surface. How amazing this place would have been without the stone round it, probably surrounded by dark alder trees, the odd willow the wisp? The Romans knew it was already revered, and although they built a huge temple and bath complex around it, they at least took on board the beliefs of the native peoples by calling it Sulis Minerva – combining the resident goddess’s name with a similar deity of their own.

So many tourists come through here, but the place is remarkably quiet – everyone has a hand-held guide and they’re listening to that, so if you just sit by the main baths it’s really very peaceful and relaxing. You’re not supposed to touch the water but you really must to appreciate how hot it is. When you lean over the drain (in one of the photos above) it’s quite a sauna! and the bright orange of the iron is dazzling.

Folklore

Temple of Sulis
Sacred Well
pure joy
pure joy Mar 25, 2003

The healing properties of Bath’s mineral springs were said to have been discovered by Prince Bladud around 900BC. Banished from court because of his leprosy, he became a swineherd. When the pigs were suffering from cracked skins he took them done to a marsh where the warm water gave off steam which healed them so completely that Bladud immersed himself and cured his leprosy.

You will find Bladud references dotted around Bath (e.g. the Bladud Arms pub and Bladud Buildings)

Miscellaneous

Temple of Sulis
Sacred Well
Rhiannon
Rhiannon Feb 25, 2004

It would surely be remarkable if people hadn’t been intrigued by the hot springs at Bath since the midsts of time. Cunliffe and Davenport, in their 1985 ‘The Temple of Sulis Minerva..’ confirm that mesolithic flints were found beneath the temple when it was excavated.

They also mention that seventeen pre-Roman Celtic coins were found near the spring. They were ‘fresh and unworn’ in appearance so it’s doubtful they were old coins thrown in later. In that case, these are the earliest votive offerings found.

Miscellaneous

Temple of Sulis
Sacred Well
TomBo
TomBo Nov 26, 2003

Solinus, the 3rd century CE author of Collectanea Rerum Memorabilium, a descriptive book about places, wrote of Britain “...there are many great rivers and hot springs richly adorned for the use of men. Over these springs the Minerva is patron goddess and in her temple the eternal flames never whiten into ash, but when the flame declines it turns into rocky lumps”. Many scholars have interpreted this as a reference to the temple of Sulis Minerva at Bath arguing that a sacred fire (fuelled by coal) was kept burning for her here.

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