Dr Giacomo Savani

Profile

My research explores the social, cultural, and sensory dimensions of water in the ancient and early modern worlds, combining approaches from archaeology, history, environmental humanities, classical reception, and the history of medicine.

I am particularly interested in Roman bathing culture, sensory experience, water infrastructures, healing environments, and the reception of antiquity in Renaissance and eighteenth-century Europe. My work has been supported by major international fellowships, including awards from Horizon Europe (Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions), the Irish Research Council, and the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Alongside my research, I am committed to research-led teaching, public engagement, and interdisciplinary collaboration with museums, heritage organisations, and creative practitioners.

Research interests

My research focuses on the cultural history of water across the ancient and early modern worlds. I am interested in how water shaped everyday life, health, religion, sensory experience, identity, and the relationship between people and their environments.

A major strand of my work examines Roman baths and bathing culture. Through archaeological, historical, and sensory approaches, I investigate how bathing structured social interaction, embodied experience, healing practices, and expressions of status and power across the Roman world. My recent monograph, Rural Baths in Roman Britain: A Colonisation of the Senses (Routledge, 2025), explores the sensory dimensions of bathing in the Romano-British countryside and the role of baths in processes of cultural change and social competition.

A second area of research explores the reception of classical ideas about water, health, and medicine in Renaissance and eighteenth-century Europe. I am particularly interested in thermal baths, spas, classical medicine, antiquarian scholarship, and the ways in which ancient knowledge was reinterpreted to address contemporary questions of health, the body, and the environment.

I currently lead the Sapling-funded project Sensing the Fort, which investigates the sensory and environmental experience of Roman forts through experimental, interdisciplinary, and public-engagement approaches. More information about the project is available here.

My broader interests include:

• Roman archaeology
• Roman Britain
• Water history
• Ancient environments
• Baths and bathing culture
• History of medicine and healing
• Sensory studies and the ancient senses
• Classical reception
• Renaissance antiquarianism
• Environmental humanities
• Heritage and public engagement

I welcome opportunities for collaboration with researchers, museums, heritage organisations, environmental humanities projects, and cultural institutions working on themes related to water, health, environment, sensory experience, and the ancient world.

Current projects

• Sensing the Fort
• Voiceless Spas: Reconstructing Non-Elite Experience in European Thermal Spaces

Networks and public engagement

I am a member of the BATH – BAlnea & THermae research group, the Centre for Ancient Environmental Studies, University of St Andrews, the ERC-funded project The Water Cultures of Italy, 1500-1900, Ca’Foscari University of Venice, the Centre for Ancient World and Classical Reception Studies, University of Leeds, and the Law, History and Temporalities Forum, University of Leeds.

Since 2015, I have organised more than fifteen international conferences, workshops, and research events, bringing together scholars, heritage professionals, and artists working across archaeology, history, environmental humanities, and classical reception. These initiatives have included A Compendium of Climate Literacies, organised in collaboration with Cove Park (Scotland), which explored how the past can help us understand contemporary environmental challenges and their unequal social impacts.

I am currently leading, together with Dr Henry Clarke (University of Leeds), the organisation of the international workshop Water Cultures Beyond Roman Italy (University of Leeds, April 2027), which will expand scholarly conversations about water cultures beyond traditional Italian-centred frameworks.

I am also interested in public engagement and knowledge exchange. In 2021–22, I created and co-hosted two seasons of the podcast series The Sustainable Past, which explored topics including water, health, sustainability, and the relevance of the ancient world to contemporary societal challenges.

Qualifications

• Fellow of The Higher Education Academy
• PhD in Roman Archaeology, University of Leicester
• Master’s degree in Classical Archaeology (Distinction), University of Bologna
• Bachelor’s Degree in Classics (First class),University of Bologna

Professional memberships

• Fellow of The Higher Education Academy
• Member of the BATH – BAlnea & THermae research group
• Member of the Centre for Ancient Environmental Studies, University of St Andrews
• Member of the ERC-funded project The Water Cultures of Italy, 1500-1900, Ca’Foscari University of Venice
• Member of the Centre for Ancient World and Classical Reception Studies, University of Leeds
• Member of the Law, History and Temporalities Forum

Student education

I design, lead, and assess research-driven modules in Roman history, archaeology, culture, and classical reception across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. My teaching portfolio also includes Latin and Ancient Greek at beginner and intermediate levels. In 2026–27, I will launch A Water History of the Ancient World, a new interdisciplinary module exploring the cultural, environmental, religious, and sensory dimensions of water across ancient societies.

My teaching is strongly research-led and draws on my work in Roman archaeology, sensory studies, environmental humanities, the history of medicine, and classical reception. I aim to provide students with direct engagement with current scholarly debates while developing their critical thinking, analytical, and research skills. I also supervise undergraduate and postgraduate research projects, supporting students in the development of independent research and academic writing.

The quality of my teaching has been recognised through a University of Leicester Superstar Award for Teaching Excellence (2016) and a nomination for the University of Leeds Partnership Awards in the category of Teacher of the Year (2025).

I welcome enquiries from prospective PhD candidates interested in Roman archaeology, Roman Britain, ancient water cultures, sensory archaeology, the history of medicine, classical reception, environmental history, and human-environment interactions in the ancient and early modern worlds.

Research groups and institutes

• Classics
• Classics