north to south. The height of the south wall left
standing is about 2ft. 8in. ; the bottom of this bath is paved with a
concrete composed of broken tiles in mortar, and formed the ground on
which the tesserę were laid. These have been almost entirely removed,
except a portion some three or four inches wide, next the walls, where
there are some of the grey tesserę remaining. The south and west walls
of this bath, as well as portions of the east side, are covered with a
tessellated mosaic; the lower fifteen inches in dark grey or
slate-coloured tesserę, and the upper portion with white; the tesserę
being cubes some half-inch square. These wall tesserę are smaller than
those found at the bottom; they are embedded in a very compact concrete
of mortar and pounded tile, about two inches in thickness. The east and
west walls of the bath are composed entirely of Roman tiles, and are
eighteen inches wide; the south wall appears to have been two feet
thick, but at each corner has been much broken, probably at the time the
posts of the fence were put down. In the centre of this wall are two
large Roman tiles, which project outward from the wall six inches, |
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and
appear as if they led to some more southerly room. In the south-west corner of the bath is a drain
leading through the wall. The north of this bath has some steps leading
up into another apartment; the steps appear to have been seven inches
wide, but the tiles of which they were composed have been partly broken
away, at fourteen inches in height from the bottom. These steps are four
feet long, the north two feet being a wall of boulders; but at the east
and west of these steps was a projection, that on the east (the most
perfect) was eighteen inches wide, seventeen inches deep, and nine
inches high; the inner surface being tessallated with a continuation of
the tesserę of the east side of the bath, and rounded off at each
corner. The corner next the succeeding apartment had white marble
tesserę, and the same appear to have paved a seat, the red brick
concrete of which alone remains; the west side of this step is much more
broken. The bottom floor of this room is about 4ft 9in. from the surface
of the field. The steps led up to an apartment No. 2. In the south-west
corner was a drain leading through the wall. |