Module 049 · Architectural Intelligence
The Hammam
Geometry
Architecture as thermal machine — the geometry of water, fire, and stone
A traditional Moroccan hammam is a Roman hypocaust that never stopped working. Three rooms arranged on a single axis — cool, warm, hot — each one degree closer to the furnace behind the wall. Hot air flows under the floor through pillared channels. Water is heated in a brass cauldron and carried by gravity to the bathing rooms. Steam rises through domed ceilings pierced by star-shaped oculi. The geometry is 2,000 years old. The Saffarin Hammam in Fes, built in the 14th century, is still operating. This module is the blueprint.
3
Bathing rooms (cool → warm → hot)
22–50°C
Temperature gradient
<2%
Roof opening to floor area ratio
14th c.
Saffarin Hammam, Fes (still open)
60 lx
Max illuminance (cool room)
80–95°C
Cauldron water temperature
60–120cm
Hypocaust pillar height
100+
Public hammams in Fes (19th c.)
Section I
The Plan
Floor plan of a typical Moroccan hammam. Linear axis from entrance to furnace. Click any room for detail. The thermal gradient runs left to right — from street temperature to fire.
Section II
The Section
Longitudinal cross-section. Domed ceilings with star-shaped oculi. Hypocaust channels under the floor. The dome shape forces condensation to run down the walls — never dripping on bathers.
Section III
The Thermal Data
Temperature, humidity, light, and time for each room. The hot room floor exceeds 45°C — wooden sandals (naail) are essential. Light drops below 20 lux as steam accumulates.
| Mashlah | Barrani | Dakhli | Furnace | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Temperature | 22–25°C | 30–38°C | 40–50°C | 200–400°C |
| Floor Temperature | 22°C | 32–38°C | 45–55°C | — |
| Humidity | 30–40% | 50–60% | 80–100% | — |
| Illuminance | ≤60 lx | 30–40 lx | <20 lx | — |
| Wall Construction | Single | Single | Double (flues) | Double |
| Roof Openings | ~2% of area | ~1.5% | <1% | None |
| Time Spent | Before & after | 30–45 min | 5–15 min | Staff only |
Section IV
The Systems
HYPOCAUST (Heating)
Inherited from Roman thermae. Pillars of brick or stone (60–120cm high) support floor slabs. Hot air from the furnace flows through these channels, heating the floor from below. The thicker the slab, the longer it retains heat. Flues in the walls carry warm air upward and out through chimneys — the hot room's walls are double-skinned.
WATER SYSTEM
A single brass cauldron over the furnace heats water to 80–95°C. Hot water flows by gravity into the burma (basin) in the hot room. Bathers mix hot and cold water in buckets to their preferred temperature. Cold water arrives from a rooftop cistern or municipal supply. All water drains through sloped floors into channels that exit the building. Running water, never pools — an Islamic principle.
1. Rooftop cistern → cold taps
2. Cauldron (80–95°C) → burma in hot room
3. Bathers mix in buckets
4. Sloped floors → drainage channels → exit
ROOF & LIGHT
Domed and vaulted ceilings with small star-shaped glass oculi — the only light source. Total roof opening area is less than 2% of floor area. Maximum illuminance never exceeds 60 lux. In the hot room, steam accumulation reduces light to near darkness by afternoon. The dome shape forces condensation to run down the curved walls rather than drip on bathers.
Section V
The Kit
What goes inside the hammam. Every product has a function. Nothing is decoration.
Sabun Beldi
Black Soap
Olive oil paste aged 3 months. Applied to open pores, then scrubbed off with kessa.
Fes, Meknès
Kessa
Exfoliating Glove
Rough woven mitt. Removes dead skin in visible grey rolls. The core tool.
Local weavers
Ghassoul
Rhassoul Clay
Mineral clay from the Moulouya Valley. Only mined in Morocco. Applied to face and hair.
Moulouya Valley
Naail
Wooden Sandals
Thick wooden clogs. Essential in the hot room where marble exceeds 45°C.
Carpenter workshops
Steau
Bucket & Ladle
Plastic now, historically copper. Bathers fill from taps, mix hot and cold.
Local
Henna
Hair Treatment
Applied to hair in the warm room. Lawsonia inermis. Conditions and colours.
Azilal, Beni Mellal
Section VI
2,000 Years
Roman thermae arrive in Mauretania Tingitana (Volubilis)
Oldest known Islamic hammam in Morocco (Volubilis, Idrissid period)
Almohad dynasty builds hammams beside every mosque
Marinid period — Hammam Saffarin built in Fes (still operating)
Fes has 100+ public hammams. Every neighbourhood has one.
Morocco has the highest number of traditional living hammams in the Islamic world
Reading Notes
The Farran Economy
The fire attendant (farran) runs the furnace but also cooks for the neighbourhood. Tanjia pots and koreenes (cow feet) are buried in the furnace ash for hours. The heat economy wastes nothing — the same fire heats water, floors, walls, and Sunday lunch.
The Dome Solution
Every hammam ceiling is domed or vaulted. Not for aesthetics — for physics. Steam condenses on the curved surface and runs down the walls through carved channels. A flat ceiling would drip cold water directly on bathers. The dome is a condensation management system disguised as architecture.
Mosque + Hammam
Hammams are always built near mosques. Ritual purification (ghusl) requires full-body washing. Before indoor plumbing, the hammam was the only place this was possible. The Almohads (12th century) made it policy: every new mosque required a neighbouring hammam. The pair became the civic infrastructure of the Islamic city.
Sources
Architecture: Raftani & Radoine (2008), "The Architecture of the Hammams of Fez, Morocco" (ResearchGate). Hammam Saffarin: Wikipedia, based on rehabilitation documentation. Hypocaust system: Alksar.com; Wikipedia (Hammam). Thermal data: SaunaDekor.com (Moroccan Bath specifications: 38–42°C, 50–80% humidity); Humidity Matters Ltd; Effe Perfect Wellness. Light levels: Raftani & Radoine (2016), daylight factor measurements in Fes hammams — max horizontal illuminance <60 lx, roof openings <2% of floor area. Social history: Morocco World News; Sarah Tours; Middle East Eye. Products: editorial documentation from Moroccan hammam traditions. Roman precedent: Volubilis Idrissid bath plan (Alaa El-Habashi, 2006). Timeline: compiled from Raftani & Radoine, Wikipedia, and Morocco heritage sources.
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