Roman and Byzantine baths along the Ionian coast. Nicopolis and Buthrotum

Almost fifty bath complexes were excavated in the westernmost part of the Eparchy of Illyricum,in the coastal region of Provincia Epirus Vetus, which now consists of the Ionian Islands, the western coast of Greece and the coast of Albania. Most of the roman baths are dated between the 2nd c. BC and the 4th c. AD. Only few facilities survived after the 4th c. AD and even fewer were constructed in the 4th and the 5th c. AD. In any case, almost all bath complexes were destroyed and/or abandoned in the late 6th c. AD. This paper, given the limited space, studies the bath complexes in the most significant sites of Provincia Epirus Vetus, which are also the most well-studied archaeological regions. The first one is the capital of the eparchy, Nicopolis, and the second one is the important city of Butrint along with its suburbs, Vrina Plain and Diaporit.