Hypocaust

Caldarium from the Roman Baths at Bath, England. The floor has been removed to reveal the empty spaces which the hot air would flow through.

Ruins of the hypocaust under the floor of a Roman villa. The part under the exedra is covered.

A hypocaust is an ancient Roman system of central heating. The word literally means "heat from below", from the Greek hypo meaning below or underneath, and kaiein, to burn or light a fire.

It is traditionally considered to be invented by Sergius Orata (although it is not fully confirmed), who devised this ingenious system for heating public baths and private houses. The floor was raised off the ground by pillars and spaces were left inside the walls so that hot air from a furnace (praefurnium) could circulate through these open areas. Rooms requiring the most heat were placed closest to the furnace, whose heat could be increased by adding more wood.

A derivation of hypocaust, the gloria, had been in use in Castile until the arrival of modern heating. After the fuel (straw, paper, refuse) has been reduced to ashes, the air intake is closed to keep hot air inside and slow combustion.

Korean traditional houses use an Ondol which is similar to a hypocaust, drawing smoke from a wood fire typically used for cooking.

See also

• Ondol
• Gloria in the Spanish Wikipedia.

External links

• A picture of the skeleton of a dog found in the hypocaust of a bath in Germany; it had apparently crawled beneath the floor seeking warmth and been asphyxiated by the fumes.
• About Roman baths (referring to Sergius Orata), by William Smith.

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