Public Toilets in Ancient Rome Didn’t Give People Much Privacy
In ancient Rome, people sat on long white marble benches with holes on them, and used it as a public bathroom. There were no privacy partitions like there are today. Rather, people sat right next to each other. Back then, people wore togas, so their body was protected already. (It’s not like they were pulling pants down.) Underneath the bench was a stone-lined gutter. Unfortunately, this would have been a great place for vermin to run around like rats, snakes, and spiders. Back then, these public toilets would have been incredibly dirty. Members of the upper-class would avoid using them at all costs. These toilets were meant to be used by men, and were only installed in areas of the city where men were working. The Romans had a working sewer system, which helped to remove waste from cities efficiently.