Athena Review Image Archive ™
Vienne: Hypocaust in a house at St. Romain-en-Gal
Hypocaust in Roman private house (photo: Athena Review).
Along
the Rhône River was the commercial zone and associated residential
quarter of Saint-Romain-en-Gal. In the 1st-3rd centuries AD this
community had a number of private dwellings with hypocausts or furnaces
with hot air vents.
This view shows tiles piled up to support
the floor of a house, under which warm air would be circulated. Similar
hypocaust techniques were used in the caldarium or hot room of Roman
baths.
Nearby, the Musée archéologique de Saint-Romain- en-
Gal-Vienne displays many of the finds from these houses, including a
spectacular collection of mosaics and paintings.
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