In southern Turkey, at the site of the ancient city of Antioch ad Cragum, a small Roman bathhouse from the late second to early third century AD underwent an unexpected transformation. Instead of remaining a monument to luxury with marble walls, mosaics and painted vaults, it turned into a large production complex for wine and olive oil.
Archaeologists led by Emlyn Dodd and L. Rodriguez discovered stone presses, an olive mill, channels for draining liquid and large vats in the "Small Bath" outside the city's main gates. One of them, converted from a former cold pool, held about 2900 liters — twice as much as a similar container at another winery in the same settlement.
The conversion took place in late Roman times, roughly between the fourth and seventh centuries. The northern half of the building was completely refitted: mosaic floors were partly destroyed to install equipment, and the water supply systems were adapted for collecting juice and oil. Researchers note that this is the largest known agricultural facility to date inside the city walls of Antioch.
Similar examples of repurposing monumental buildings are found in other regions of the Mediterranean. In late antiquity, cities faced population decline and changing economic priorities, so residents preferred to use existing sturdy walls and floors rather than build new structures from scratch.
Interestingly, individual wineries and oil presses had previously been found in the same Antioch, but combined production in a single building is rare for the region. The volume of the vats and the presence of specialized equipment indicate serious scale, although exact output figures remain approximate for now.
The transformation of the bathhouse into a factory shows how late antique communities adapted inherited infrastructure to new needs. Instead of abandoning an expensive structure, they redirected it to the production of goods that provided both local consumption and possible trade.
Such finds remind us that even the sturdiest buildings of the past continue to serve if people find new uses for them that meet current conditions.
