Those interested in participating with a contribution (20-minute limit) should send an outline (no more than 350 words) and brief CV (no more than 150 words) to cfp@cisapalladio.org by 15 November 2026.

Although the list of possible topics given below is broad and interdisciplinary, the seminar aims to preserve the focus on architecture and the built environment. Discoveries that have emerged through archival research, work with inventories and the direct examination of buildings are especially encouraged.

Possible topics, within the specified time frame of 1400-1800, include but are not limited to the following:

The study of antique thermal baths

• excavations and surveys of ancient baths carried out by antiquarians, artists and architects
• ways of depicting large thermal complexes
• the impact of large monolithic baths

The practice of bathing

• early modern attitudes towards the curative properties of the baths
• travel accounts describing visits and stays at the baths
• beyond Rome: evidence of interest in traditional Islamic hammams

Towards a history of baths built in the early modern period

• advances in plumbing systems for temperature-controlled baths and pools
• private baths in the residences of the elite
• designs for public baths within the urban environment
• public thermal baths at natural springs (two priority areas have been identified for this topic: Tuscany and Veneto, and/or a comparison between them)

Learning from the architecture of ancient baths

• the ‘thermal window’
• the use of barrel and cross vaults
• nterlocking spaces of varied shapes
• the impact on 18th-century academic designs for public buildings