Jerusalem ( CNN ) -- Israeli archaeologists have discovered an ancient Roman bathhouse that was probably used by the soldiers who destroyed the Second Temple in Jerusalem , the Israel Antiquities Authority announced Monday . The surprise discovery includes the mark of Rome 's Tenth Legion -- as well as the paw print of a dog . The animal probably belonged to one of the soldiers , excavation director Ofer Sion said . The print `` could have happened accidentally or have been intended as a joke , '' he said . Archaeologists were not expecting to find the Roman structure in the Jewish Quarter , where a mikvah , or Jewish ritual bath , was being constructed . `` The mark of the soldiers of the Tenth Legion , in the form of the stamped impressions on the roof tiles and the in situ mud bricks , bears witness to the fact that they were the builders of the structure , '' he said . `` It seems that the bathhouse was used by these soldiers who were garrisoned there after suppressing the Bar Kokhba uprising in 135 CE ( A.D. ) , when the pagan city Aelia Capitolina was established , '' he explained . The structure includes a number of plastered bathtubs in the side of a pool , a pipe used to fill it with water , and a white industrial mosaic pavement on the floor . Hundreds of terra cotta roof tiles were found on the floors of the pool , indicating it was a covered structure , he added . The bathhouse tiles are stamped with the symbols of the Tenth Legion `` Fretensis '' -- LEG X FR , he said . The discovery shows that the Roman encampment established to help keep Israel under Roman domination was larger than previously thought , another expert said . `` Despite the very extensive archaeological excavations that were carried out in the Jewish Quarter , so far not even one building has been discovered there that belonged to the Roman legion , '' Jerusalem district archaeologist Yuval Baruch said . `` The absence of such a find led to the conclusion that Aelia Capitolina , the Roman city which was established after the destruction of Jerusalem , was small and limited in area , '' he said . But the discovery of the 1,800-year-old bathhouse `` together with other discoveries of recent years , shows that the city was considerably larger than what we previously estimated , '' he said . Understanding the ancient Roman city of Aelia Capitolina is `` extremely valuable , '' he said , because it determined the shape of Jerusalem 's historic walls `` and the location of the gates to this very day . ''
The surprise find of the ancient Roman encampment was bigger than thought . It includes stones engraved with the mark of the legion that destroyed the Second Temple . Archeaologists found a dog 's paw print . The Roman settlement helped determine the location of Jerusalem to the present day .