Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it’s mistakes. We’ve all heard that one, right? Well, perhaps we should also remember the achievements as well. Like the crapper.
Some of you know I can be quite the documentary nerd. Throw in history, some archeology and I will be an attentive viewer. In my viewing adventures of several ancient civilization of late one thing struck me. Throughout time… at various periods and in different areas of the world basic sanitation and the disposal of waste (particularly of the human ilk) has always been factored into the design of abodes somehow.
Some of the earliest examples have been discovered from ancient civilizations from the Indus Valley. There have also been evidence of pretty sophisticated organized disposal systems from newly discovered settlement sites from pre-history Britain. Yet, (for whatever reason) when those civilizations declined… there seems to be no evidence of effective poop removal. It’s as if everyone collectively got stupid and just crapped anywhere they felt like. (One would think that several outbreaks of the plague would have clued someone to this problem.)
Seriously, basic sanitation only came back into “vogue” in what… like the eighteen hundreds? (Yes, yes… it bears mentioning that what we take for granted today was invented by one Thomas Crapper. In fact, the picture is one of his creations. Beauty, eh?) According to history the Romans were the last ones who had any form of organized waste disposal before that. So the art of flushing poop away was lost for a thousand years? (Along with the recipe for concrete that can be set underwater… but that’s another story altogether.)
So the question that forms the title to this post has to be asked… don’t you think? Were people too busy to remember the poop? Perhaps there wasn’t a need because they were soiling their garments from the fear of being pillaged, unreasonable taxes by a feudal lord, an upcoming inquisition hearing, etc… any form of strife that was prevalent at the time. Really… how can you forget the poop for a thousand or more years? I find that both scary and befuddling.
So, let this be a warning. Once the crappers disappear… that will be the dawning of the new dark ages… so, watch where you step.