About 5,000 years ago, ancient Egypt was already distinguishing social classes through toilet facilities. Wealthier Egyptians had indoor toilets with limestone tops that sat over sand-filled pits, while poorer individuals used simple wooden stools with a hole cut into the top.
The oldest known sewage system is thought to have been in the ancient city of Mohenjo-daro (Mound of the Dead Men) in present-day Pakistan. Around 2500 BC, the city featured brick toilets connected to a sewage network that directed waste to cesspits outside the city. These brick-lined drains were advanced for their time, and archaeologists believe there may have even been public toilets in the city. Sadly, Mohenjo-daro was abruptly destroyed around 1700 BC, and these early innovations were lost.
Meanwhile, on the island of Crete, the Minoans developed toilets that used water to flush away waste. Later, in the 9th century BC, the Roman Empire expanded upon this idea by establishing public toilets and sewer systems across their territories. In communal Roman toilets, officials would often gather, sitting on benches with multiple holes, as they discussed matters of state. However, toilet paper was yet to be invented—the Romans used a “xylospongium,” a sponge on a stick that was rinsed and reused. Not exactly ideal sanitation!
