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Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Interview With Owner

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Mark and Jenny Ronsman, both 39, from Wisconsin, US, bought their house three and a half years ago. They were told that there was a hidden hot tub under the home office. However, they’d never had the time to set about getting it up and running until lockdown happened and they had more time on their hands. Scroll down for Bored Panda’s interview with the couple!

More info: Facebook

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

The previous homeowner, an elderly lady, had spoken about the secret tub that was covered years ago due to lack of use. She said that as they got older, they stopped using it and decided to convert it into an office. She even showed an old photo of it filled with water and people, but it didn’t give a good view of how the hot tub itself looked. “I was truly shocked and overjoyed that something so beautiful was IN our house! I was also truly grateful to discover the previous owners took such great care that what they did could be reversed!” remembers Mark.

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

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Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

When Mark and Jenny moved into their new house, one of the first things that they did was to tear away the carpet above the hidden treasure. Mark was really surprised that the tile in the hot tub looked beautiful and was deep. “Thankfully, the tub was in really great shape. The tile is absolutely beautiful. After tearing off the cover, I then had to chip away all of the leveling material they used around the edges of the tub. Next, I put a new coat of sealant on the stone floors. After that, we spent hours upon hours getting all of the grout whitened and the tub sanitized. We also had to put weather stripping on all the doorways to better seal in the air. Finally, we added a security system so that an alarm will go off if someone enters the room without deactivating it. We have a small child and never wanted to have to worry about her falling in unsupervised,” he explains.

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

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Image credits: Mark Ronsman

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

Now they finally have the time to fix it up to run again. “While it was always our intention to fix up the hot tub, it really didn’t reach the top of our ‘need’ list until the lockdown, so that’s when we kicked it up a gear in terms of restoration efforts,” says Mark. “We got a second opinion from a hot tub professional, and now we do plan to replace at least one of the water pumps for energy efficiency reasons. Due to the power consumption differences between the old and new pump, the new pump will actually pay for itself in less than a year. So hopefully we can get that work done as soon as possible!”

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

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Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

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Image credits: Mark Ronsman

“I’m an IT systems engineer and my wife Jenny is a college professor. We have an amazing 5-year-old daughter. The dear old woman who sold this house sold it to us because she said it was important for her that the house goes to a nice family. Our in-laws live across our backyard, the street over, and the former owner just loved that, and how close it would make our family.”

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

Couple Bought A New House And Discovered A Roman Bath Hidden Underneath The Floor

Image credits: Mark Ronsman

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1.2Mviews

Hidrėlėy

Fascinated by music, movies and sitcoms, I'm passionate about social media and can't live without the internet, especially for all the cute dog and cat pictures out there. I wish the day had about 40 hours to be able to do everything I want.

Fascinated by music, movies and sitcoms, I'm passionate about social media and can't live without the internet, especially for all the cute dog and cat pictures out there. I wish the day had about 40 hours to be able to do everything I want.

Vėjūnė Rimašiūtė

Vėjūnė is a community manager who helps artists all over the world introduce their artwork to Bored Panda readers and in that way, become more popular. Since she was always fascinated by the art world, she studied Culture Management and Cultural Policy at Vilnius Academy of Arts where she expanded her knowledge about it. Now she's using all this knowledge to showcase its beauty and help others dive into the fascinating world of art.

Vėjūnė is a community manager who helps artists all over the world introduce their artwork to Bored Panda readers and in that way, become more popular. Since she was always fascinated by the art world, she studied Culture Management and Cultural Policy at Vilnius Academy of Arts where she expanded her knowledge about it. Now she's using all this knowledge to showcase its beauty and help others dive into the fascinating world of art.

What do you think ?

Roman Hans 4 years ago

Why is the phrase "Roman bath" in the headline? I'm pretty sure Spartacus wasn't around in 1972.

63points

Jef Bateman 4 years ago

Exactly. I thought they bought a house in Europe and found an ancient bath in their basement. I feel misled.

83points

Load More Replies...

Jean Hendrickson 4 years ago

In the style of a Roman Bath.

11points

Evil Little Thing 4 years ago

A Roman bath is a dug out style of deeply inset soaking bath. So everyone who knew what it meant was expecting to see a tiled, in-ground hot tub.

6points

TheExtremeSmell 4 years ago

What was found under this floor will shock you! Covered floor leads to amazing discovery you have to see to believe! This is like a power washer for your arteries!

5points

Foock Auff 4 years ago

LOLLLL this is a swinger's tub hahaha

3points

Paul Jordan 4 years ago

Well DUH! It's the type and style so therefore its a Roman bath. Now, 'scuse me while I take a bath and keep yer Hans away.

2points

kitty.boom 4 years ago

For Clickbait hahaha It's just a hot tub as per the article, they could have added roman bath inspired hot tub in the headline then.

1point

Sijing J 4 years ago (edited)

My first thought seeing this was...when did the Romans conquer Wisconsin?

35points

TheExtremeSmell 4 years ago

They’re still trying. Their ships march up and down the coast like a tiger in a cage.

10points

Load More Replies...

Mindy Keys 4 years ago

I thought I missed that day in History.

2points

Adrian Smythe 4 years ago

They're called "Italians" now... and they pretty much only got as far a New York, and some more of the East coast. Faded out a bit beyond that. Took about 1700 years... but never big in Wisconsin. That pump filter cover is definitely a giveaway to this being a bit newer than Roman era. ;-)

0points

Martha Meyer 4 years ago

Clickbait! I thought it was an actual ancient bath when I read the headline. Then I see it's in the US and just an old tub.

25points

Susan Mercurio 4 years ago

This comment has been deleted.

-2points

Load More Replies...

Me_thecrazycatlady 4 years ago

Anyone else disappointed they didn't show a pic of it filled with water?

10points

Rob Chapman 4 years ago

The headline is double click bait. "Hidden Roman Bath" implies they found something from ancient Rome. First, it's a hot tub, not a "Roman Bath". Second, they didn't "find" a hidden anything, they were told it was there when they bought the house.

9points

gracefullikeagazelle 4 years ago

You are boring. Shut up.

-1point

Load More Replies...

Elina Kuusisto 4 years ago

It's gorgeous! And what a perfect room! You are going to get so much enjoyment out of it.

6points

Jeannie Carle 4 years ago

The headlines were, as usual, misleading, but how I'd love to find that in MY house!!! I'm quite sure they weren't expecting this to be soooo beautiful! B ut ---- the photos are a bit misleading too - as they often are - it looks a lot bigger than it actually is in the first photos. Don't care - would love to have it :-)

2points

Mark 4 years ago

Jeeeeez, how deep! Needs a diving board ;)

2points

analpaca 4 years ago

I thought this those was going to be in Colchester or more appropriately Bath or some other old Roman town. I guess I was playing truant when the history lesson of The Romans in Wisconsin went down 😁

1point

Geoffrey Holland 4 years ago

It's a cool item and maybe the title is a little off but who cares? Get over yourselves.

1point

Human #1,232,867 4 years ago

Now, they can work in swimsuit!

1point

Steve Barnett 4 years ago

What a jackpot find. Looks like it was originally outdoors, hence the wooden walls?

1point

KatHat 4 years ago

I would doubt it. I would guess they were going for a sauna look and feel.

6points

Load More Replies...

Cherye Norris 3 years ago

Fascinating! I wish I could find something like that!

0points

Suzanne Haigh 3 years ago

Yes it would be a lovely surprise but it definitely is not Roman nor does it even look Roman, but lovely in itself

0points

Schlomo Hofmeister 3 years ago

Dear Family Rossman, It seems clear to me that this is a Mikve, a Jewish ritual bath, which some Jewish families afford themselves to build in their own house! Maybe contact your local (orthodox) Rabbi to find out more!!! Seems pretty interesting!!! Feel free to contact me if you need further advise. Rabbi Schlomo from Vienna (Austria) rabbinat@ikg-wien.at

0points

Niffler_13 4 years ago

But they didn’t discover it. They previous home owner told them it was there. They just chose to leave it covered.

0points

Jennifer DeFillippo 4 years ago

I have to say that I, too, was led to click so I could see the fascinating “ancient Roman bath” unearthed in a centuries-old house in old Italy or Greece...but what I see here is a hot tub set into a floor. Granted, they are lucky to find it in such wonderful condition ~ and I admit to being a little jealous lol ~ but this is certainly NOT what I expected to find when I read the headline.

0points

Steve Cruz 4 years ago

I've only seen a similar hot tub once before: photos of a high-roller suite in Vegas. So glad it's in great shape. They need to get a motorized pool cover to prevent their daughter from falling in -- an alarm will only indicate that she's probably already in the room and in the water.

0points

A K 4 years ago

Wow that is so lucky!!!

0points

Christina Uhlir 4 years ago

That is a wonderful surprise!!!

0points

Sally Hudd 4 years ago

It may not be a ‘Roman’ Roman bath but it is beautiful. Anyone can have a home office, not many have a fabulous bath under their floor.

0points

it's me again 4 years ago

This is gorgeous. Hooray for the new owners! Win!

0points

Lynn Deatherage 4 years ago

Put some water in that thing and post an update! Want to see water!! It is beautiful and what a great quarantine project!

0points

Lisa Pockat Bork 4 years ago

It's beautiful! I would love to find that in my home.

0points

Marcus Nash 4 years ago

What a joke

0points

Dorothy Parker 4 years ago

I, for one, have had dreams about finding hidden spaces in my house. This would have been a delight!

0points

Dorothy Cloud 4 years ago

It was very pretty, but a Roman bath it wasn't. Looks like they'll have a lot of enjoyment out of that!

0points

Chris Watson 4 years ago

Nice

0points

Jaybird3939 4 years ago

I would have liked to see it filled. I bet it's beautiful with the tile and the water going.

0points

sharron lynn parsons 4 years ago

Incredible discovery, wonder what people covered it up, quite beautiful !!!

0points

Maurice Talen 4 years ago

But where re the water filters and air pump for bubbles>?

0points

Foock Auff 4 years ago

I would either cover it in plexiglass to walk over, or get it in working condition!!

0points

Mitch Lord 4 years ago

They are getting it in working condition. Read.

0points

Load More Replies...

hobbitly 4 years ago

Very nice! I would love to have that :)

0points

Elizabeth Butler 4 years ago

Lucky people! that is lovely. It is a Roman-STYLE bath and awesome!

-1point

Mumof1 4 years ago

A ROMAN bath? Get outta here. I took one look at those tiles and knew tis wasn't a Roam bath at all. It's a Roman STYLE bath which is very different. Please get your hedlines right BP!

-1point

Cathy Carey 4 years ago

Roman bath?! It's a hot tub folks

-1point

Chelle Snail 4 years ago

This is so good! I'm really happy these people bought the house as they are preserving a piece of very special history. That bath is so beautiful! I hope they showed the old lady the pics? ;)

-1point

Bettye McKee 4 years ago

This is a fabulous find! Imagine finding something like that in your house. It probably sold as a Roman bath and is a good replica on a smaller scale.

-1point

Coffey Murphy 4 years ago

I Love It!

-1point

Id row 4 years ago

I wouldn't have that uncovered with a 5 year old in the house, it's like leaving a loaded gun around. I'd be worried about falling in myself. With no water in it, you'd break your neck if you fell in.

-1point

Susan Mercurio 4 years ago

I guess you missed the part where he said that the door has a special lock on it so their child can't get in.

1point

Load More Replies...

Barbara Berg 4 years ago

I don't care about the click bait. It's still a stunning rare treasure to be found in modern today...

-1point

Roman Hans 4 years ago

Why is the phrase "Roman bath" in the headline? I'm pretty sure Spartacus wasn't around in 1972.

63points

Jef Bateman 4 years ago

Exactly. I thought they bought a house in Europe and found an ancient bath in their basement. I feel misled.

83points

Load More Replies...

Jean Hendrickson 4 years ago

In the style of a Roman Bath.

11points

Evil Little Thing 4 years ago

A Roman bath is a dug out style of deeply inset soaking bath. So everyone who knew what it meant was expecting to see a tiled, in-ground hot tub.

6points

TheExtremeSmell 4 years ago

What was found under this floor will shock you! Covered floor leads to amazing discovery you have to see to believe! This is like a power washer for your arteries!

5points

Foock Auff 4 years ago

LOLLLL this is a swinger's tub hahaha

3points

Paul Jordan 4 years ago

Well DUH! It's the type and style so therefore its a Roman bath. Now, 'scuse me while I take a bath and keep yer Hans away.

2points

kitty.boom 4 years ago

For Clickbait hahaha It's just a hot tub as per the article, they could have added roman bath inspired hot tub in the headline then.

1point

Sijing J 4 years ago (edited)

My first thought seeing this was...when did the Romans conquer Wisconsin?

35points

TheExtremeSmell 4 years ago

They’re still trying. Their ships march up and down the coast like a tiger in a cage.

10points

Load More Replies...

Mindy Keys 4 years ago

I thought I missed that day in History.

2points

Adrian Smythe 4 years ago

They're called "Italians" now... and they pretty much only got as far a New York, and some more of the East coast. Faded out a bit beyond that. Took about 1700 years... but never big in Wisconsin. That pump filter cover is definitely a giveaway to this being a bit newer than Roman era. ;-)

0points

Martha Meyer 4 years ago

Clickbait! I thought it was an actual ancient bath when I read the headline. Then I see it's in the US and just an old tub.

25points

Susan Mercurio 4 years ago

This comment has been deleted.

-2points

Load More Replies...

Me_thecrazycatlady 4 years ago

Anyone else disappointed they didn't show a pic of it filled with water?

10points

Rob Chapman 4 years ago

The headline is double click bait. "Hidden Roman Bath" implies they found something from ancient Rome. First, it's a hot tub, not a "Roman Bath". Second, they didn't "find" a hidden anything, they were told it was there when they bought the house.

9points

gracefullikeagazelle 4 years ago

You are boring. Shut up.

-1point

Load More Replies...

Elina Kuusisto 4 years ago

It's gorgeous! And what a perfect room! You are going to get so much enjoyment out of it.

6points

Jeannie Carle 4 years ago

The headlines were, as usual, misleading, but how I'd love to find that in MY house!!! I'm quite sure they weren't expecting this to be soooo beautiful! B ut ---- the photos are a bit misleading too - as they often are - it looks a lot bigger than it actually is in the first photos. Don't care - would love to have it :-)

2points

Mark 4 years ago

Jeeeeez, how deep! Needs a diving board ;)

2points

analpaca 4 years ago

I thought this those was going to be in Colchester or more appropriately Bath or some other old Roman town. I guess I was playing truant when the history lesson of The Romans in Wisconsin went down 😁

1point

Geoffrey Holland 4 years ago

It's a cool item and maybe the title is a little off but who cares? Get over yourselves.

1point

Human #1,232,867 4 years ago

Now, they can work in swimsuit!

1point

Steve Barnett 4 years ago

What a jackpot find. Looks like it was originally outdoors, hence the wooden walls?

1point

KatHat 4 years ago

I would doubt it. I would guess they were going for a sauna look and feel.

6points

Load More Replies...

Cherye Norris 3 years ago

Fascinating! I wish I could find something like that!

0points

Suzanne Haigh 3 years ago

Yes it would be a lovely surprise but it definitely is not Roman nor does it even look Roman, but lovely in itself

0points

Schlomo Hofmeister 3 years ago

Dear Family Rossman, It seems clear to me that this is a Mikve, a Jewish ritual bath, which some Jewish families afford themselves to build in their own house! Maybe contact your local (orthodox) Rabbi to find out more!!! Seems pretty interesting!!! Feel free to contact me if you need further advise. Rabbi Schlomo from Vienna (Austria) rabbinat@ikg-wien.at

0points

Niffler_13 4 years ago

But they didn’t discover it. They previous home owner told them it was there. They just chose to leave it covered.

0points

Jennifer DeFillippo 4 years ago

I have to say that I, too, was led to click so I could see the fascinating “ancient Roman bath” unearthed in a centuries-old house in old Italy or Greece...but what I see here is a hot tub set into a floor. Granted, they are lucky to find it in such wonderful condition ~ and I admit to being a little jealous lol ~ but this is certainly NOT what I expected to find when I read the headline.

0points

Steve Cruz 4 years ago

I've only seen a similar hot tub once before: photos of a high-roller suite in Vegas. So glad it's in great shape. They need to get a motorized pool cover to prevent their daughter from falling in -- an alarm will only indicate that she's probably already in the room and in the water.

0points

A K 4 years ago

Wow that is so lucky!!!

0points

Christina Uhlir 4 years ago

That is a wonderful surprise!!!

0points

Sally Hudd 4 years ago

It may not be a ‘Roman’ Roman bath but it is beautiful. Anyone can have a home office, not many have a fabulous bath under their floor.

0points

it's me again 4 years ago

This is gorgeous. Hooray for the new owners! Win!

0points

Lynn Deatherage 4 years ago

Put some water in that thing and post an update! Want to see water!! It is beautiful and what a great quarantine project!

0points

Lisa Pockat Bork 4 years ago

It's beautiful! I would love to find that in my home.

0points

Marcus Nash 4 years ago

What a joke

0points

Dorothy Parker 4 years ago

I, for one, have had dreams about finding hidden spaces in my house. This would have been a delight!

0points

Dorothy Cloud 4 years ago

It was very pretty, but a Roman bath it wasn't. Looks like they'll have a lot of enjoyment out of that!

0points

Chris Watson 4 years ago

Nice

0points

Jaybird3939 4 years ago

I would have liked to see it filled. I bet it's beautiful with the tile and the water going.

0points

sharron lynn parsons 4 years ago

Incredible discovery, wonder what people covered it up, quite beautiful !!!

0points

Maurice Talen 4 years ago

But where re the water filters and air pump for bubbles>?

0points

Foock Auff 4 years ago

I would either cover it in plexiglass to walk over, or get it in working condition!!

0points

Mitch Lord 4 years ago

They are getting it in working condition. Read.

0points

Load More Replies...

hobbitly 4 years ago

Very nice! I would love to have that :)

0points

Elizabeth Butler 4 years ago

Lucky people! that is lovely. It is a Roman-STYLE bath and awesome!

-1point

Mumof1 4 years ago

A ROMAN bath? Get outta here. I took one look at those tiles and knew tis wasn't a Roam bath at all. It's a Roman STYLE bath which is very different. Please get your hedlines right BP!

-1point

Cathy Carey 4 years ago

Roman bath?! It's a hot tub folks

-1point

Chelle Snail 4 years ago

This is so good! I'm really happy these people bought the house as they are preserving a piece of very special history. That bath is so beautiful! I hope they showed the old lady the pics? ;)

-1point

Bettye McKee 4 years ago

This is a fabulous find! Imagine finding something like that in your house. It probably sold as a Roman bath and is a good replica on a smaller scale.

-1point

Coffey Murphy 4 years ago

I Love It!

-1point

Id row 4 years ago

I wouldn't have that uncovered with a 5 year old in the house, it's like leaving a loaded gun around. I'd be worried about falling in myself. With no water in it, you'd break your neck if you fell in.

-1point

Susan Mercurio 4 years ago

I guess you missed the part where he said that the door has a special lock on it so their child can't get in.

1point

Load More Replies...

Barbara Berg 4 years ago

I don't care about the click bait. It's still a stunning rare treasure to be found in modern today...

-1point

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