How Clean Was Ancient Rome?

Public hygiene in ancient Rome was deeply embedded in daily urban life, yet it functioned according to norms very different from our modern world. Roman cities were equipped with complex sanitation systems, including latrines, sewers, drainage networks, and bath complexes, that together formed an infrastructure of cleanliness and public health. Archaeological and literary evidence suggests that while Roman hygiene could be remarkably sophisticated, it also relied on communal practices that today might seem less than sanitary.

Public latrines were common features of Roman urban planning. Found in cities across the empire, from Ostia and Pompeii to Ephesus and Leptis Magna, these installations were often attached to bath complexes or located near forums and marketplaces. They consisted of rows of marble or stone seats with keyhole-shaped openings, beneath which ran continuously flowing water channels that carried waste into sewer systems. A secondary shallow channel at foot level provided water for rinsing cleaning implements. This hydraulic design reflects the Roman commitment to maintaining constant water flow as a mechanism of cleanliness and odor control.

The Romans did not have toilet paper. Instead, they used a xylospongium, or sponge on a stick, for cleaning after defecation. Stored in a communal basin of water, sometimes mixed with vinegar or salt, it was rinsed and reused by multiple individuals. While modern observers often view this as unhygienic, within the Roman framework of flowing water and communal bathing culture, such practices were considered acceptable. Cleanliness was not conceived in terms of individual disposable materials but through circulation and washing.

Roman bath culture further shaped attitudes toward hygiene. Daily or frequent visits to public baths were common across social classes, where bathing involved immersion in hot, warm, and cold pools, accompanied by oiling and scraping the body with a strigil. The baths served both hygienic and social functions, reinforcing a cultural emphasis on bodily care and public appearance. Latrines attached to bath complexes benefited from the same water supply systems, ensuring regular flushing and maintenance.

Nevertheless, Roman sanitation had limitations. Many urban dwellings lacked private latrines, requiring inhabitants to use public facilities or chamber pots emptied into streets or cesspits. Waste management relied heavily on gravity-fed sewers such as Rome’s Cloaca Maxima, but these systems did not eliminate all health risks. Parasite eggs and other pathogens have been identified in ancient latrines, suggesting that despite extensive water infrastructure, intestinal diseases remained common.

The communal nature of Roman hygiene also reflects broader social dynamics. Public latrines functioned as social spaces where conversation and interaction occurred freely. Their open seating arrangements indicate that privacy was not a central concern. Instead, participation in shared facilities reinforced civic identity and urban belonging.

Roman sanitation practices were advanced for their time, yet far from perfect. On the one hand, the empire developed some of the most advanced water and waste removal systems of the ancient world. On the other, practices such as shared sponges and public, open latrines show that ideas about cleanliness were shaped by cultural norms and limited technology.

Bibliography:

• Jansen, Gemma, Ann Olga Koloski-Ostrow, and Eric Moormann, eds. Roman Toilets: Their Archaeology and Cultural History. Peeters Publishers, 2011.
• Jansen, Gemma, Ann Olga Koloski-Ostrow, and Richard Neudecker, eds. Sixty-Six Toilets and Urinals in the Ancient City of Rome: Sanitary, Urbanistic, and Social Agency. Peeters Publishers, 2024. https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.24900056
• Koloski-Ostrow, Ann Olga. The Archaeology of Sanitation in Roman Italy: Toilets, Sewers, and Water Systems. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2015.
• Ledger, Marissa L., Erica Rowan, Frances Gallart Marques, et al. “Intestinal Parasitic Infection in the Eastern Roman Empire During the Imperial Period and Late Antiquity.” American Journal of Archaeology 124, no.4 (2020): 631-657. https://doi.org/10.3764/aja.124.4.0631
• Shultz, David. “Roman Toilets May Actually Have Been Bad for Public Health.” Science (2016). https://www.science.org/content/article/roman-toilets-may-actually-have-been-bad-public-health
• Zeldovich, Lina. “How the Ancient Romans Went to the Bathroom.” Smithsonian (2021). https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-ancient-romans-went-to-the-bathroom-180979056/