Britain's hot mineral springs are as beautiful as they were in Roman times

Viewed from a distance, with the late afternoon sun washing over its honey-colored stone terraces, the English spa town of Bath is a delight to the eye. After centuries of stagnation, Bath flourished during the 18th-century Georgian era. A building boom helped turn the city into the social, gambling and entertainment capital of the time and left a legacy of architectural elegance. No wonder it's a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Although Celtic remains have been found in the area, it was the Romans who put the town on the map in 65 CE. While building their trademark network of roads, they arrived at a loop in the River Avon in the southwest of the country. There, cradled by a natural amphitheater of seven hills, they came upon the only hot mineral springs in Britain. Fond of their creature comforts, they used local stone to dam the spring and created a number of bathing pools. Bath was born.

The mineral spring was looked upon as a gift from the gods that could cure a variety of ailments, and visitors were attracted from all over the Roman Empire. Today, the waters still rise at a rate of one million liters a day and at a temperature of 46 - water that fell as rain 10,000 years ago. The Victorians excavated the site in the 1880s, but much of what you see today is Roman. They lined the main pool with 45 sheets of lead, which, amazingly, have never been refurbished and are still watertight. The column foundations, drain channels and pavement stones surrounding the pool are all original. Visit early in the day, as this site is very popular.

The Pump Room, which adjoins the Roman baths, offers the opportunity to "take the waters " a practice that began with the installation of a fountain in 1661. Warm and sulfurous, it's not to everyone's taste. Yet the Pump Room should also be visited to witness or participate in one of the archetypal images of English social life - taking tea in sumptuous surroundings. In this late 18th-century building, complete with Romanesque columns and glittering chandeliers, tea and cake are served daily, while the Pump Room Trio, the oldest musical ensemble in Britain, serenades in the background.

Just a short distance from the Pump Room stands the modern-day equivalent of the Roman bathing experience - the Thermae Bath Spa. Nearing completion, it's a brand new glass and stone structure that has been incorporated into five historic buildings and will offer steam rooms, massage and treatment rooms as well as an open-air rooftop pool. It should be open for business in early 2005.

THE ROMANS withdrew from Bath in 410 CE and the next invaders of the area, the Saxons, built a monastery adjacent to the baths. They utilized stone from the crumbling Roman buildings but the abbey you see today dates from about 1500. It was the last English church to be built in the perpendicular Gothic style and was dubbed "The Lantern of the West" due to its 52 glass windows.

Its incredible fan-vaulted ceiling must not be missed. Also of particular note are the carved ladders bearing ascending and descending angels on either side of the arch-windowed frontage. Bath Abbey, however, is a misnomer, for this enormous place of worship serves today as a parish church, basically a local church among many in the town. It lost its abbey status following Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries in 1539.

About five minutes' walk from the abbey, the Theatre Royal and the Garrick's Head pub next door were originally the home of Richard "Beau" Nash (1674-1762), a legendary figure in Bath. He, along with the architect John Wood and entrepreneur Ralph Allen, was responsible for turning a small provincial town into a booming, elegant Georgian city, one of the most fashionable in Europe.

The wealthy socialites and gamblers attracted to Bath needed accommodating and that's where the architect John Wood (1704-1754) played his part. Take a stroll around Queen Square in the center of town, Wood's first major accomplishment. It displays the architecture, heavily influenced by the 16th-century Venetian architect Andrea Palladio, which established the city's style.

Although it is somewhat obscured by the trees in the central garden area, take a long, lingering look at the north side of this square. With its centerpiece portico and pediment, complete with six columns, and both flanks mirroring each other, it epitomizes Palladian style and proportion. It appears to be one complete building, but in fact comprises seven houses. In effect, it resembles a fine, country mansion dropped into the confines of a city square.

The railings that guard the drop to the basement level are complemented by an "overthrow," a curved, iron arch containing a lantern, so elegant yet practical. Georgian basements were often supplied with storage rooms that extended out under the street. As you walk the streets of Bath, you are in fact treading on the roofs of these vaults.

A very short walk up the steep gradient of the delightfully named Gay Street delivers you to Wood's masterpiece - the Circus. Britain's first circular street has been described as "the Colosseum turned outside-in." Maybe Wood was paying homage to Bath's Roman past but the Circus also matches the diameter of prehistoric Stonehenge - look out for the 108 stone acorns, sacred to the Druids, that decorate the parapets. The three-storied terraces allowed Wood to include Doric, Ionic and Corinthian columns at different levels. He died three months after construction began and completion of the project fell to his son, also named John, and took 13 years to complete.

Take a left turn out of the Circus, along Brock Street (looking out for the Gothic-styled arched doorway of No. 16) and you arrive at the Royal Crescent, the magnificent highlight of the younger John Wood's architectural career. This semi-elliptical terrace of 30 houses was the first of its kind in Britain and was completed in 1774. The feeling of uncluttered space is complemented by the huge sweep of lawn that runs down, on a gentle slope, to the Royal Victoria Park below, one of five parks close to the city center. Before leaving the Royal Crescent, call in at No. 1 if you wish to view a fine, restored Georgian house interior.

Other notable terraces are situated up the hill, north of the Royal Crescent. Camden and Cavendish crescents and Somerset Place are good examples, though my favorite is Lansdown Crescent. Off the beaten tourist track, its charm is enhanced by its quietness even in high season. Sheep grazing in the wooded field opposite give it a rural feel. If you wish to learn more about the town's Georgian development, the Building of Bath Museum on Paragon Street is well worth a visit.

Bath is actually a very green city, with trees planted seemingly in every available space. Also, if you look up, almost anywhere in the city, you will catch a glimpse of the wooded hills that surround it. Look in a southerly direction and it's possible to catch sight of Prior Park and its mansion. They lie one and a half kilometers south of the river, providing a peaceful contrast to the bustle of the city center.

Equipped with a pair of good shoes and a willingness to wander, the elegant beauty of Bath lies at your feet.

COLIN MILLER, THE JERUSALEM POST Dec. 8, 2004