The Roman Baths Foundation has lost more than £90,000 after switching to cashless donations at its wishing well in 2022.
The charity looks after the Roman Baths in Bath, UK – a historical site that welcomed more than one million guests last year. The visitor attraction includes the Sacred Spring, the Roman Temple, the Roman Bath House, and a museum.
Until March 2022, guests had been able to throw coins into the wishing well, or Circular Bath. This was used in Roman times as a cold plunge pool.
A sign installed at the bath read: “Please do not throw coins in the bath. Tap the contactless point or use the cash box to make your offering.”
Per the Telegraph, the charity’s most recent accounts show it collected £10,812 in total donations in 2022/23 and £9,490 in 2023/24, compared to £104,129 in 2018/19 – the last full year the bath operated as a wishing well.
Contactless donations in 2022/23 were £2,504. In 2023/24, they were £2,335.
Bath and North East Somerset Council, which oversees the Roman Baths Foundation, said the move to cashless donations was partly due to a “decline in cash usage post-pandemic”, and because the coins had “begun to damage the 2,000-year-old structure”.
Damage to 2,000-year-old bath
A council spokesperson said: “The Roman Baths is a post-pandemic success story and in the last financial year it generated more income from ticket sales and other activity than ever before.
“In addition our priority is to care for and conserve the Roman Baths, one of the world’s great historic sites. The tradition of throwing coins into the water had begun to damage the 2,000-year-old structure of the circular bath, putting the monument at unnecessary risk.
“Managing water-damaged coins and the decline in cash usage post-pandemic further supported our decision to look at other ways to encourage support.”
