Latrinae: Roman Toilets in the Northwestern Provinces of the Roman Empire (Archaeopress Roman Archaeology)

Latrinae: Roman Toilets in the Northwestern Provinces of the Roman Empire' presents examples of Roman toilets from a wide area in northwestern Europe comprising Austria, Belgium, Britain, Germany and the Netherlands. Seven papers consider ‘typically Roman’ stone channel toilets, while five papers discuss the actually much more common wooden toilets of the cesspit type. Some studies concentrate on a single installation, others present a number of installations in their architectural surroundings. In addition, Roman chamber pots, which could be used either solo or in a toilet chair, are presented in two papers. A further paper on stercus, usually connected to latrine duty in the Roman army, questions this interpretation and offers a different meaning of the word. This book is the first collection on Roman toilets of the northwestern provinces, and gives a good overview of the possibilities for human waste removal in Roman times. The volume provides a fascinating introduction to this under-researched group of Roman installations. Table of Contents Introduction – Stefanie Hoss Sewers or cesspits? Modern assumptions and Roman preferences – Gemma Jansen The latrine at the Roman fort on the Antonine Wall at Bearsden – David J Breeze Flushed with success – a Roman flushing installation in the latrines of the Great Bathhouse of the Colonia Ulpia Traiana near Xanten (D) – Norbert Zieling The latrines of Roman Aachen – Andreas Schaub An outhouse in the garden? – Looking at a backyard in the vicus of Bonn – Jeanne-Nora Andrikopoulou-Strack, Manuel Fiedler and Constanze Höpken A bath with public toilets in the vicus of Bonn – Gary White The Roman public toilet of Rottenburg am Neckar – Stefanie Hoss Latrines connected to bathhouses in Germania inferior – an overview – Michael Dodt Roman toilets in Nijmegen, Oppidum Batavorum and Ulpia Noviomagus, the Netherlands – Elly N.A. Heirbaut Arlon, apport des découvertes récentes dans le vicus à l’examen des latrines gallo-romaines – Denis Henrotay A Roman latrine near St. Kolumba in Cologne and its remarkable contents – Michael Dodt Latrine pits in the Roman vicus of Vitudurum / Oberwintherthur (Switzerland) – Verena Jauch A Roman cesspit from the mid-2nd century with lead price tags in the civil town of Carnuntum (Schloss Petronell/Austria) – Beatrix Petznek Roman chamber pots – Beatrix Petznek A Roman ‘Toilet bowl’ from Speicher (Eifelkreis Bitburg-Prüm, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany) – Bernd Bienert The meaning of stercus in Roman military papyri – dung or human faeces? Or: who is supposed to clean this shit up? – Kai Juntunen Latrinae: Roman Toilets in the Northwestern Provinces of the Roman Empire presents examples of Roman toilets from a wide area in northwestern Europe comprising Austria, Belgium, Britain, Germany and the Netherlands. Seven papers consider ‘typically Roman’ stone channel toilets, while five papers discuss the actually much more common wooden toilets of the cesspit type. Some studies concentrate on a single installation, others present a number of installations in their architectural surroundings. In addition, Roman chamber pots, which could be used either solo or in a toilet chair, are presented in two papers. A further paper on stercus, usually connected to latrine duty in the Roman army, questions this interpretation and offers a different meaning of the word. This book is the first collection on Roman toilets of the northwestern provinces, and gives a good overview of the possibilities for human waste removal in Roman times. The volume provides a fascinating introduction to this under-researched group of Roman installations. Cover 1 Contents 3 Title Page 3 Copyright Page 4 Frontispiece 5 Introduction 9 Stefanie Hoss 9 Sewers or cesspits? Modern assumptions and Roman preferences 13 Gemma Jansen 13 The latrine at the Roman fort on the Antonine Wall at Bearsden 27 David J Breeze 27 Flushed with success – a Roman flushing installation 31 in the latrines of the Great Bathhouse of the Colonia Ulpia Traiana near Xanten (D)* 31 Norbert Zieling 31 The latrines of Roman Aachen 37 Andreas Schaub 37 An outhouse in the garden? – 43 Looking at a backyard in the vicus of Bonn 43 Jeanne-Nora Andrikopoulou-Strack, Manuel Fiedler and Constanze Höpken 43 A bath with public toilets in the vicus of Bonn 51 Gary White 51 The Roman public toilet of Rottenburg am Neckar 55 Stefanie Hoss 55 Latrines connected to bathhouses in Germania inferior – 63 an overview 63 Michael Dodt 63 Roman toilets in Nijmegen, Oppidum Batavorum 85 and Ulpia Noviomagus, the Netherlands 85 Elly N.A. Heirbaut 85 Arlon, apport des découvertes récentes dans le vicus 97 à l’examen des latrines gallo-romaines 97 Denis Henrotay 97 A Roman latrine near St. Kolumba in Cologne and its remarkable contents 103 Michael Dodt 103 Latrine pits in the Roman vicus of Vitudurum / Oberwintherthur (Switzerland) 111 Verena Jauch 111 A Roman cesspit from the mid-2nd century with lead price tags 127 in the civil town of Carnuntum (Schloss Petronell/Austria) 127 Beatrix Petznek 127 Roman chamber pots 135 Beatrix Petznek 135 A Roman ‘Toilet bowl’ from Speicher 145 (Eifelkreis Bitburg-Prüm, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany) 145 Bernd Bienert 145 The meaning of stercus in Roman military papyri – 151 dung or human faeces? Or: who is supposed to clean this shit up? 151 Kai Juntunen 151 Roman toilets,latrine This volume presents a selection of papers and case studies first presented at a conference designed to focus on the toilets of the Northwestern provinces of the Roman Empire, taking place at Radboud University on the 1st and 2nd of May 2009. Papers demonstrate the value of scientific analysis of waste to understand the food habits and diseases of the Roman users of the toilet, while elsewhere questions on how to find the necessary expertise and financing for such investigations were raised This volume presents a selection of papers and case studies on toilets and toilet-use in the Northwestern provinces of the Roman Empire. It is hoped this volume will promote and stimulate further research in this interesting research topic