AQUAE (

See also:

• LAT

Lat. for "

See also:

• WATERS, TERRITORIAL

waters'')  , a name given by the Romans to sites where mineral springs issued from the earth . Over a hundred can be identified, some declaring by their modern names their ancient use: Aix-les-Bains in Savoy (Aquae Sabaudicae), Aix-en-Provence (Aquae Sextiae), Aix-la-Chapelle or Aachen (Aquae Grani), &c . Only two occur in Britain: Aquae Solis —less correctly Aquae Solis—at Bath in Somerset, which was famous, and Buxton (called Aquae simply), which seems to have been far less important . Aquae Stills was occupied by the Romans almost as soon as they entered the island in A.U . 43, and flourished till the end of the Roman period . It was frequented by soldiers quartered in Britain, by the Britons, and by visitors from north Gaul, and its name was known in Italy, though patients probably seldom travelled so far . Like most mineral springs known to the ancients, it was under the protection of a local deity, the Celtic Sul, whom the Romans equated with their Minerva . Stately remains of its baths and temple have been found at various times, especially in 1790 and 1878-1895, and may still be seen there .