Thermae: Ancient Rome, Japan, and the Joy of BathingClosed

Exhibition overview

One of the most prosperous civilizations in history was ancient Rome, where the population enjoyed a comfortable lifestyle and advanced architectural techniques epitomized by the ubiquitous thermae, or public bathhouse. In a nation of avid bath lovers like Japan, it is no surprise that the thermae have captured people’s imaginations, especially after Mari Yamazaki’s manga Thermae Romae made them more widely known. Through videos, models, and over 100 works of art—including paintings, sculptures, and archaeological finds from the collection of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples—this exhibition introduces the lives of ancient Romans with a focus on the thermae. The exhibition also touches on the bathing culture of Japan, which has flourished as a result of the country’s natural topography and regional cultures. Like Lucius, the protagonist of Thermae Romae who travels between present-day Japan and Rome through a time portal in a bathhouse, visitors will have the rare opportunity to compare the bathing cultures of ancient Rome and Japan.

Dates: Saturday, April 6 - Sunday, June 9, 2024
* Exhibits shall be partly rotated after May 9.

Hours: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. (Open until 8 p.m. on May 10, June 7 and June 8.)
Admittance until 30 minutes before closing time.

Closed: Wednesdays (Except for June 5)

Admission: Adults: ¥1,200
Visitors aged 65 or over with valid documentation: ¥1,100
Students (High school and college): ¥700
Admission is free for children in middle school or younger. Admission is free for disability passbook holders and up to one accompanying adult. Click here to access the discount voucher page.

Organizers: Panasonic Shiodome Museum of Art, The Asahi Shimbun

Supporters: Ambasciata d’Italia, Minato City Board of Education, Tokyo Sento Association

Cooperation: Mari Yamazaki

Click here for directions to the Museum

We may change the entry process depending on the level of crowding.
For the latest information, please visit our museum website.

Exhibition highlights

1.Includes 32 works from the collection of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples, including Statue of Venus and Votive Relief of Apollo and the Nymphs!

In ancient Rome, a number of large-scale thermae were built inside the city of Rome, while hot springs were also used in connection with medical treatment and fitness. Commoners lent variety to their lives by enjoying interludes at thermae after work each day and spectacles on special days. Meanwhile, the wealthy hosted lavish banquets at their homes. The exhibition includes valuable paintings, sculptures and archaeological materials that shed light on thermae and the lives of the people of ancient Rome.

2.Introduces clearly through videos and models the bathing cultures of ancient Rome and Japan!

Experience first-hand the bathing cultures of ancient Rome and Japan through a range exhibits and materials, including a speculative restoration of an ancient Roman thermae created using computer graphics and 1:250 scale model of the Baths of Caracalla.

3.Attention also given to the history and regional characteristics of Japan’s bathing culture, from onsen to sento!

Whether it be taking a bath at home, occasionally going to a sento (public bath) or visiting an onsen while traveling, bathing has become both an indispensable part of the daily routine of the Japanese people of today and a pleasure. The exhibition also introduces artworks and materials relating to bathing in Japan, providing a glimpse of a part of Japan’s history through its bathing culture.

Introduction: Thermae—Ancient Rome and public bathing

In a narrow sense, the word thermae refers to the large-scale public baths built by Roman emperors and other high-ranking officials, but in a broad sense it refers to all public baths within the territory of ancient Rome. In the 4th century, there were eleven large-scale public baths in the city of Rome and around 900 small-scale ones.
The first thermae in the city of Rome were built by Agrippa (25 BC), lieutenant to the first Roman emperor, Augustus. Large-scale thermae were later built by emperors Nero (c. AD 60–64), Titus (AD 80) and Trajan (AD 109). Sites in the city where significant remnants survive are the famous Baths of Caracalla (AD 216) and the Baths of Diocletian (c. AD 302). In other cities, too, numerous remains of thermae have been discovered.

CG: Imaginative reconstruction of the Baths of Caracalla
3D VIRTUAL RECONSTRUCTION by Altair4 Multimedia, Rome Italy
Altair4Multimedia.it

Chapter 1: Life in ancient Roman cities

In large cities such as Rome, various kinds of people including high-ranking government officials, nobles, merchants, craftspeople, casual laborers, and slaves lived in close proximity to each other. While the homes of the wealthy were frequently host to lavish banquets to entertain friends, the living spaces of the lower classes were cramped and had no running water, kitchens or bathing facilities.
To dispel the discontent among the masses, the emperors undertook such measures as dispensing food and providing entertainment. Public bathing facilities were also extremely useful in gaining popularity among the masses. Color was added to the lives of the common people by way of spectacles on special days, and by way of thermae after work on normal days.

*Banquet with hetaera (courtesan)*, 1st century, Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli
Photo © Luciano and Marco Pedicini

Chapter 2: Baths in ancient Rome

The origins of thermae can be traced to the recreational swimming pools at ancient Greek sports facilities and the bathing facilities established for medical practices on sacred grounds. It was the Romans, however, who expanded public bathing to a remarkable scale as a form of entertainment for the masses.
For Romans, thermae were not only places to clean the body, but also places to exercise, perspire, socialize, and maintain one’s physical and mental health. In addition to the various bathing rooms, that gymnasiums and multiple rooms were attached to thermae demonstrates that they were all-round entertainment complexes.
In order to build large-scale thermae, land and supplies of water were required. With the construction of the Aqua Virgo in 19 BC, real thermae using large quantities of hot and cold water came to be.

*Votive relief to Apollo and the Nymphs*, 2nd century,
Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli
Photo © Luciano and Marco Pedicini

Chapter 3: Thermae and art

Thermae were also places where the masses could view artwork at close range. Water-resistant mosaics were favored for floors. Large-scale thermae in Rome were also decorated with numerous marble sculptures, with portraits of emperors and those responsible for building the public baths, images of various gods, and copies of famous works from ancient Greek displayed in niches or on pedestals between columns. The themes were not chosen arbitrarily, but as subjects regarded suitable for thermae.

*Statue of Venus*, 1st century,
Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli
Photo © Luciano and Marco Pedicini

Chapter 4: Japan’s bathing culture

Japan’s bathing culture can be broadly divided into bathing at natural onsen (hot springs) and bathing at artificial facilities. As a volcanic archipelago, Japan is blessed with abundance of hot springs, and the onsen in each region have been used and protected by local residents for centuries. During the Sengoku period, as exemplified by Takeda Shingen’s “hidden hot springs,” military commanders also sometimes visited onsen within their domains to recuperate.
Artificial bathing facilities were built in Buddhist temples and spread as places for cleansing people of defilements and impurities. Public bathhouses were set up in communities during the Edo period, when the current style of bathing involving soaking in a hot tub became established.
In this chapter, we introduce artworks and materials pertaining to this bathing culture. Materials relating to onsen in places like Hakone and Atami that were accessible from Edo/Tokyo and to the numerous sento that remain in Tokyo are also displayed, with attention also given to baths in private homes.