Sewer History: Photos and Graphics


For Reference	Water and Wastewater Systems in Imperial Rome by Roger D. Hansen, waterhistory.org Wikipedia Articles: Sanitation in ancient Rome, Roman aqueduct, Cloaca Maxima, Roman technology Aquae Urbis Romae - The Waters of the City of Rome, includes a series of maps showing development of the water system over time. Maquettes de Rome - Outstanding 3D models of the Roman Forum, Roman Baths, and other sites
	Sewer near Temple of Divus Iulius, Rome, showing a flat roof construction method. Attributed to period of Sulla (138-78 BCE). Source: Marion Elizabeth Blake, Ancient Roman Construction in Italy from the Prehistoric Period to Augustus (Washington, D.C.: Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1947), plate 15, figure 1.
	Sewer near Temple of Saturn, Rome, circa 4th century BCE. "On one side, the blocks are laid so as to furnish sufficient width for a shelf on which to lay a runnel; on the other, they are laid as stretchers with no bond. This sewer has the distinction of possessing the earliest voussoir arch yet found in Rome." (p. 123). Source: Marion Elizabeth Blake, Ancient Roman Construction in Italy from the Prehistoric Period to Augustus (Washington, D.C.: Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1947), plate 15, figure 2.
	Roman aqueducts Claudia and Anio Novus, 38-52 CE. (Anio Novus is built on top of Claudia.) Source: F. E. Turneaure and H. L. Russell, Public Water-Supplies, Requirements, Resources, and the Construction of Works (New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1916), p. 3.
	Row of toilets from circa 100 CE, Sicily. Source: Joy Mehulka, Pima County Department of Transportation, Tucson, Arizona
	A huge collection of Roman-era clay water supply pipes, in a museum in Pafos, Cyprus. Source: Source: "A historical perspective on the development of urban water systems," by William James, Professor of Water Resources Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario,Canada.
	Apodyterion (changing room) in the Stabian Baths at Pompeii in Italy. Source: AlMere/Wikimedia Commons.
	Latrine in the the ancient city of Minturno, Italy, showing both the channel that ran under the seats and the channel for washing in front of the seats. Source: AlMere/Wikimedia Commons.
	Women's caldarium (room with a bath) in the Terme Urbane in Herculaneum, Italy. Source: AlMere/Wikimedia Commons.
	Latrine in Ostia (port city at the mouth of the Tiber River), Rome. Source: AlMere/Wikimedia Commons.
	The Baths of Caracalla were Roman public baths, or thermae, built in Rome between 212 and 216 AD, during the reign of the Emperor Caracalla. The extensive ruins of the baths have become a popular tourist attraction. The bath complex covered approximately 13 hectares (33 ac). The bath building was 228 meters (750 ft) long, 116 meters (380 ft) wide and 38.5 meters (125 ft) estimated height, and could hold an estimated 1,600 bathers. The Caracalla bath complex of buildings was more a leisure centre than just a series of baths. The "baths" were the second to have a public library within the complex. Like other public libraries in Rome, there were two separate and equal sized rooms or buildings; one for Greek language texts and one for Latin language texts.Also at the and outside of them were shopping centers sort of like a mall in current times. The baths consisted of a central 55.7 by 24 meter (183x79 ft) frigidarium (cold room) under three 32.9 meter (108 ft) high groin vaults, a double pool tepidarium (medium), and a 35 meter (115 ft) diameter caldarium (hot room), as well as two palaestras (gyms where wrestling and boxing was practiced). The north end of the bath building contained a natatio or swimming pool. The natatio was roofless with bronze mirrors mounted overhead to direct sunlight into the pool area. The entire bath building was on a 6 meter (20 ft) high raised platform to allow for storage and furnaces under the building. The libraries were located in exedrae on the east and west sides of the bath complex. The entire north wall of the complex was devoted to shops. The reservoirs on the south wall of the complex were fed with water from the Marcian Aqueduct. The building was heated by a hypocaust, a system of burning coal and wood underneath the ground to heat water provided by a dedicated aqueduct. It was in use up to the 19th century. (Wikipedia) Source: (Top) Rekonstruierter Grundriss der Caracalla-Thermen. Quelle: Wilhelm Lübke, Max Semrau: Grundriß der Kunstgeschichte. Paul Neff Verlag, Esslingen, 14. Auflage 1908. Wikimedia Commons. (Bottom) David Edgars/Wikimedia Commons.
	Water pipe made of lead in the ancient Roman city of Herculaneum, Italy. Source: AlMere/Wikimedia Commons.