AIA Lecture: "Exploring the Technologies and Realities of Roman Toilets: Not a Lot to Go On"

The Pittsburgh Society of the Archaeological Institute of America and the Department of Classics of the University of Pittsburgh welcomes Ann Olga Koloski-Ostrow, the Archaeological Institute of America's Norton Lecturer and Professor Emerita of Classical Studies at Brandeis University.

This talk considers the following: what can Roman toilets teach us about daily life in ancient Rome?  What does the archaeology of these structures reveal about Roman hygiene, public sanitation, customs related to purity or cleanliness? In a talk that investigates and illustrates some key examples of public and private Roman toilets from Rome, Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Ostia, we take a trip down into the black holes of ancient space for some answers.