Ephesus - The Aegean Coast - Cities and Towns in Turkey - Turkey - Home
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| The latrines in
Ephesus are in a very good state of preservation. Originally, they were
much larges and consisted of a semi-covered rectangular area surrounded
by columns with marble and bronze statues in the centre and a pool
affording ventilation. The room is surrounded by a row of marble seats
with a marble conduit below it allowing a constant flow of water from
the nearby aqueduct.
The latrine was actually very highly decorated. The floor was covered with mosaics and the walls with marble panels. Use of the latrine was restricted to men, who paid a fee on entrance. Public latrines were built in order to obtain the uric acid used in tanning sheep and goatskins in the tanneries opened by the Emperor Vespasian. |
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Built during the 1st-century, the Roman
latrine of Ephesus was quite
advanced and civilized for its time. In fact, it was really ahead of its
time. It was constructed over a channel with an uninterrupted flow of
water and the toilet seats, formed by cutting holes into marble benches
that line the walls, were covered by a roof. The marble benches were
often quite cold, especially during the winter. It is said that many of
the Romans would try and "anticipate" their visits and send one of their
servants (Probably the one with the biggest...well, you know!) to
precede them to the latrine to warm the seat for them. As you look at the picture, you may think the shape of the hole looks odd, but the shape was very serviceable. The opening in the front was for cleansing oneself. Remember, there was a pool in the center from which they could retrieve dippers of water for this purpose. The only other thing to note, is there are no partitions between the holes. This was very common in that day. In fact, next to the baths, this was one of the major meeting places for the men of the city. Although many of the best homes in Ephesus would have had private latrines, the men of means could find themselves caught in town. After all, when you gotta' go you gotta' go. The public latrines would have been available for a small fee. |
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CLICK HERE for
additional photos of Ephesus
and
HERE for photos of some of the intricate
detail work to be found in Ephesus.
| It is best to visit Ephesus with a good
guide - especially if it is your first visit. Although there are many licensed,
official tour guides, I believe that Can (John) Yigit is one of the best. One of
the main reasons is, not only does he love this place, but he worked here beside
the archeologists when he was in college. And, is very personable. His English
is excellent and he makes the place come alive with his narrative. Contact
information is as follows: Can Yigit Gsm +90 532. 426 63 35 Tel +90 256. 612 83 30 email: guidecan68@yahoo.com P.O. Box 152 09400 Kusadasi / Aydin / Turkey Here
are a couple of comments about John. |
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