Roman Thermae, Varna

The Roman Thermae are a complex of Ancient Roman baths (thermae) in the Black Sea port city of Varna in northeastern Bulgaria [1]. The Roman Thermae are situated in the southeastern part of the modern city, which under the Roman Empire was known as Odessus [1]. The baths were constructed in the late 2nd century AD and rank as the fourth-largest preserved Roman thermae in Europe and the largest in the Balkans [1]. The Roman baths of Varna were built towards the end of the 2nd century and remained in use for about a hundred years, till the late 3rd century [1]. Coins of Roman emperor Septimius Severus (r. 193–211) have been discovered among the bath ruins [1]. The Roman Thermae of Varna feature the whole range of facilities including an apodyterium, a frigidarium, a tepidarium and a caldarium as well as a palaestra [1]. Heating was provided by means of a hypocaust, an underfloor heating system of pipes [1].