Toilet facilities in Pompeii：

Pompeii, the most famous ancient Roman archaeological site in the world, tells the details of Roman civic life in a city buried by a volcanic eruption. Public toilets (foricae) were already relatively common in the Roman city, mostly in the form of cesspits and sloping floor facilities, where people disposed of their excrement by burying it and flushing it (relatively late). The location of the toilets was mostly located deep in the kitchen of the house and the other wastewater in the house for unified discharge. In Pompeii, there were usually sloping floors near the toilets, which diverted the waste to the sewer inlet through the difference in elevation, and the excrement was cleaned by flowing water. In general, excrement in Pompeii was diverted through a network of waterways under the sidewalks or along the streets. It is easy to see that due to the lack of hygiene knowledge the city of Rome focused more on relieving the smell and visual discomfort of excrement, but not further on the health of the people.

Health risks due to incomplete health systems：

A number of details were uncovered in the investigations of archaeologists Ann Koloski-Ostrow and Gemma Jansen. They looked at the hidden dangers of public toilets used by people at the bottom of the Roman hierarchy. “Rome is famous for its sophisticated plumbing systems, modern studies of old excrement suggest that its sanitation technologies were not doing much for the residents’ health.（The secret history of ancient toilets)” Toilets are more often used to solve basic physical needs and to ensure some privacy, while it is not difficult to find rats and vermin in the sewers that pose a health and mental hazard to the users. Flies, on the other hand, are a major hazard for spreading pathogens, and they can come into contact with humans more easily in toilets to spread diseases.

The number of homes with private toilets is very small, and most people still use basins or fields to solve their excretion needs. And there are loopholes in the sewer system, such as all channels get blocked in less than a year and need to be cleaned regularly.

Location of toilets：

Generally, toilets are built near public places such as theaters, gymnasiums, bathhouses, etc., with more than a dozen seats. This is probably the earliest public toilet.

The evolution of toilets (London)

For a long time after the long history of human development the inhabitants of Europe would use the dumping form of sewage, and the only toilet in the opulent Palace of Versailles was occupied exclusively by the Queen. Both the people who petitioned the palace and the well-dressed officials usually had to purify their bowels in the corridors of the palace. And high heels were originally created to keep the street from being full of feces, dirty socks and pant feet. The advent of the industrial revolution began to overwhelm Europe. The burgeoning urban population and dirty environment became a breeding ground for disease. 1831 saw the first major cholera outbreak in London, and by 1832 30,000 people had died throughout England. It wasn’t until the late 18th century when watchmaker Alexander Cummings made a seemingly minor change to the toilet that really turned the fate of the toilet upside down. London sewers could not be systematized, and most flush toilets were only connected to existing cesspools. The original septic tank only contained excrement, etc., but now it also had to be connected to the water from the flush toilet. The city’s sewage system has not been upgraded as a result, so the sewage directly accelerates the efficiency of the overflowing cesspits, making the already crowded septic tanks even more overwhelming. While flush toilets have improved the quality of life for each household, they have thrown the sewage problem on the entire city. It was then that people gradually became aware of the connection between feces, germs and the cited water source. After a series of ordinances and reforms, London became the first modern city in the world to have sewage sewers. After this, major cities around the world followed suit, such as Paris in 1870 and Tokyo in 1884, all of which had supporting urban sewerage systems. It was because of the integrated urban sewerage system project that the flush toilet finally ushered in its own era and became a symbol of public sanitation.