Sunday, November 13, 2011

roman public toilets

public items within the bathing area were a very prominent feature in ancient rome. one of the main items was the communal toilet. when we think about the word communal, it generally means that everybody is able to use it. and when we think of the word public, it generally means out in the open, visible to everyone. so when we put the two together, we're generally talking about using a toilet in front of everybody, that everybody has used at one point in time. the toilets usually don't have seats, as well as they don't tend to be the type that flush either. most of the time, when searching for a public toilet, they are not easy to spot. the toilets don't have seats, so sometimes they're just holes in the ground or just holes on square blocks. when using these toilets, you also have to position yourself correctly, because otherwise, it could get very messy. speaking of keeping things clean, ancient rome did not have toilet paper. instead, they had a communal sponge. now think about that for a second. a sponge is much more personal than just sitting on a toilet. the sponge had to be thoroughly cleaned after every use for it to remain somewhat sanitary.



photo credit
credit
credit

No comments:

Post a Comment