Hi all,
I refer here to smaller towns and Legionary bases, where substantial sewers had not been built.
So....to put it crudely......where did the "waste" go?
Did they have ses pits?
Most Legionary fortresses are by a river, Mr Bishop will correct me if I am wrong, so does that mean most if not all waste went into the river? Example
4000 men, an underestimated garrison for a Legionary fortress...doing a thing every other day equals approx500kg a day of waste.
It had to go some where.
Your thoughts please Ladies and Gentlemen.
Kevin
Quote:Hi all,
Most Legionary fortresses are by a river, Mr Bishop will correct me if I am wrong, so does that mean most if not all waste went into the river?
Sure. Where do you think the cloaca maxima ended? That was the usual process until the later 20th century, when clarification plants became usual. Or they used just pit latrines, if no water installation was possible.
Funnily enough I was thinking of this as - 'one of those things we don't see mentioned, but know just must happen' - just the other day - that time in relation to the standard marching camps. They simply must have had latrines, but Polybius, Josephus nor Hyginus mention them (iirc).
In the case of the temporary marching camps (and could be true throughout) I strongly suspect the use of 'chamber pots' as the nice people call them - 'jerries' as my grandparents had (and I used many, many moons ago). One per tent (and per senior officer) and emptied by a suitable junior (the non-immunes) into the defensive ditch in the morning and then filled in as the camp was razed.
Anything more permanent, or in the location for a longer period, and formal latrines would be needed to prevent disease. Regular pits dug and filled in after a few days. Not dissimilar, I suspect, to the way we did it in the desert in '90/'91.
Think early occupation. Several Fortresses were in occupation.
We all ways hear about the flushing latrines....and see several smaller examples with Villas. The "poo" had to go somewhere.
Ses pit or eco loo....ie a big compost heap?.
A lot of these sites were in use for hundreds of years. Without disposal, this was going to get messy, no pun intended.
Kevin
Here are a couple of pictures that show the Latrine at Housesteads Roman Fort and also a view from below the fort that shows the cultivation terraces that the latrine emptied out onto.
This is the best example of a Roman latrine in Britain and I know it so well having worked there and had to tidy it up every morning taking out the sweet papers and rubbish.
[attachment=10239]800px-Kastell_Housestead_Latrine11.jpg[/attachment]
Here is a picture of the latrine at Chesters Roman Fort where the drain that flows into the river North Tyne makes use of a buttress of the Granary that under lies the bath house,
I do indeed know this one very well having worked there also.
So it could possibly imply that if in a rich area of land , good for growing crops, then the waste emptied itself outside a fort/fortress and the locals, or slaves, distributed it amongst the land. Or, if no land was available....it went straight in the river.
Makes sense. I presume that most of these that channelled into rivers had a wooden construction....hence no archaeological evidence is left behind.
Kevin
Human manure has been used by many cultures over the years for the growing of crops but where it has been channeled into rivers, there still is evidence of channels to take it there such as at Chesters fort as seen in the picture.
Poo on the Go....mobile latrines.
Nice one Nathan.
Brian, although your evidence is correct for Chester's fort, there are many more with unexplained disposal procedures. Chester's on the wall being of 80 ish AD?
There are many many earlier forts only built with earth and wood that we must take into account.
Kevin.
Kevin
Chesters fort on Hadrian's Wall is in fact 2nd century and built in the 120s AD but yes there may well have been situations such as you mention at earlier timber and turf forts.
This kind of thing about letting all their drainage go into the rivers was no problem to them for their water supplies mostly came from springs above the rivers, however most of the forts on the wall were away from rivers so the latrines were used for other usefull things such as at Housesteads.
Urine was often collected. Once stale it's ammoniacal content was useful in textile finishing and washing and some other industries. Vespasian taxed it.
As Martin has mentioned urine was collected by the Romans for textiles and other industries and this has been discovered at the Roman fort of Vindolanda near Hadrian's Wall, where a wooden tank was discovered that is believed to have been used for just such collection.
In fact this fort produces vast numbers of shoes in its excavations and much leather working appears to have been carried out here.
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