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Origin and history

Gallo-Roman thermal baths on Rue Laitière in Bayeux (Calvados) were discovered in 1882 during work on a postal building. Stunned by architect L. Doucet, they revealed a swimming pool and a hypocauste, partially preserved in a cellar. The brick remains include a 3.50 x 3.80 m basin and a 4 m high wall. Dated from the second century, they were abandoned after a fire in the fourth century, then filled in the eleventh century. Their size suggests private thermal baths, although this hypothesis remains uncertain according to the archaeologist Florence Delacampagne.

The city of Augustostodurum (Antique Bayeux) was surrounded by a wall in the third century, protecting an active thermal district. The 1986-1987 excavations, conducted by Delacampagne, exhumed 400 Roman coins, metal objects, and Black Burnished ceramics. These artifacts illuminate daily life and the local economy between the 2nd and 4th centuries. An oven with praefurnium (home) was also identified, confirming the thermal function of the site.

Classified as a historic monument in 1988, the remains are now integrated into the municipal services of Rue Laitière, in the bayeux protected area. Their study, documented by Doucet (1882) and Delacampagne (1997), partially reconstructed the ancient topography of the city. The public baths, distinct from this site, remain to be located precisely. Their preservation in situ offers a rare testimony of Gallo-Roman thermal architecture in Normandy.

The rediscovery of the thermal baths in 1882 marked a turning point for Bayeusan archaeology, with a methodical excavation from the beginning of the construction site. The backfilled elements, with the exception of the pelvis and hypocauste, currently limit direct study. Subsequent publications (Schütz, 2015) have deepened their urban context, linking the site with the evolution of Augustostodurum, which became Bayeux in the Middle Ages. The Creative Commons license for current photos facilitates their heritage dissemination.

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