Laconicum
Sign in to savethumb|right|Laconicum at Chedworth Roman Villa, England The laconicum (i.e. Spartan, sc. balneum, "bath") was the dry sweating room of the Roman thermae, sometimes contiguous to the caldarium or hot room. The name was given to it (Laconia: Sparta) since it was the only form of warm bath that the Spartans admitted. The laconicum was usually a circular room with niches in the axes of the diagonals and was covered by a conical roof with a circular opening at the top, according to Vitruvius (v. 10), from which a brazen shield is suspended by chains, capable of being so lowered and raised as to reg
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thumb|right|Laconicum at Chedworth Roman Villa, England The laconicum (i.e. Spartan, sc. balneum, "bath") was the dry sweating room of the Roman thermae, sometimes contiguous to the caldarium or hot room. The name was given to it (Laconia: Sparta) since it was the only form of warm bath that the Spartans admitted. The laconicum was usually a circular room with niches in the axes of the diagonals and was covered by a conical roof with a circular opening at the top, according to Vitruvius (v. 10), from which a brazen shield is suspended by chains, capable of being so lowered and raised as to regulate the temperature.
It is similar to a sudatorium, or steam bath, where water is added to produce steam.