‘Once in a century’ Pompeii discovery as ancient luxury SPA is saved from ashes with thermal baths & stunning mosaic
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SCIENTISTS have made a "once in a lifetime" discovery in Pompeii after unearthing a stunning ancient luxury spa with thermal baths and stunning mosaic designs. The lavish private bath complex has been found at the heart of a massive residence that got buried under a suffocating blanket of ash during Pompeii's final moments.
![[Excavated private thermal baths in Pompeii.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/private-thermal-baths-complex-discovered-964458405.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
Built over 2,000 years ago, the baths - featuring hot, warm and cold rooms - could host up to 30 guests. They would relax in the spa before heading into an adjacent, black-walled banquet hall, decorated with scenes from Greek mythology. A central courtyard with a large basin adds to the splendour of the house, which is believed to have been owned by a member of Pompeii's elite in its final years.
![[Newly discovered private bathhouse in Pompeii with mosaic floor.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-showing-private-bathhouse-recently-964434660_20c7c6.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
The complex is among the largest and most complex private spa sectors known so far in Pompeii. The baths were unearthed in Regio IX, a large central area of Pompeii Park still unexplored where major archaeological excavations are currently underway. Gabriel Zuchtriegel, director of the Pompeii Archaeological Park, said the private spa complex allowed wealthy habitants of Pompeii to take a bath first and then have a banquet.
![[Excavated thermal complex in Pompeii.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/large-thermal-complex-inside-private-964454966.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
Guests would shed their robes in a changing room. They would then relax in the Calidarium, a room with a hot bath, followed by the Tepidarium or warm room, before taking a plunge in a pool of cold water in the Frigidarium. Afterwards, guests would dine by candlelight in a black-walled banqueting hall decorated with scenes from Greek mythology.
![[Two ancient amphorae in a Pompeii bathhouse.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-showing-private-bathhouse-recently-964434663.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
