How did the ancients solve the toilet problem before the invention of toilet paper?

Before the invention of paper, what did the ancients use to solve the problem of going to the toilet?

In China, paper was invented earlier. According to archaeological discoveries in recent years, proof paper appeared at least 200 years earlier than Cai Lun's invention. In other words, there was already paper in the Western Han Dynasty. But paper was very precious in ancient times, mainly used for writing, and the ancients also developed the habit of "respecting and cherishing word paper". So it is impossible to wipe PP with paper unless you are rich.

So, what do you use instead of toilet paper?

1, introduction to toilet.

Toilet note

Toilet Jane is also called Xiao Mu who keeps toilets and wipes excrement. Before the invention of paper, the ancients made bamboo and sawdust into thin slices to wipe (scrape) PP, and then washed them with water for next use. The toilet cover is polished, moist and smooth, and the feel is not too bad. However, it is hard to say for poor families. Generally, they don't have the money to enjoy the toilet treatment, so they can only use bark, stones and the like to replace them, and their feel is naturally rough.

2. Rough paper.

rag paper

At first, the process of papermaking was relatively simple, and the raw materials were mostly hemp skin and hemp fabric. There are more loose fiber bundles. This kind of paper is rough and uneven, so it is called rough paper. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cai Lun improved the technology, and since then, papermaking has become more and more mature, gradually approaching modern toilet paper. Coarse paper probably feels ordinary, but it is more convenient and hygienic. Similarly, poor people generally have no money to wipe PP with rough paper, so they have to continue to scrape with toilet paper. Around the Tang and Song Dynasties, toilet paper became popular.

3. Silk.

silk

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, rich people began to wipe PP with silk. Needless to say, it feels absolutely first-class

Let's take a look at the toilet methods of ancient foreigners:

1, UK: salmon fillets. It is said that salmon can deodorize and eliminate hemorrhoids.

Salmon fillets

2. Japan: cicada wings. Soak cicada wings in warm water until they are soft and transparent, so that PP lesions can be clearly seen.

Cicada's wings

3. France: thick hemp rope. Pull back and forth through the crotch, hehe.

Coarse hemp rope

4. Rome: A stick. The stick is wrapped in cotton cloth, cleaned and reused, similar to toilet notes in China.

pole

5. India: hands. Solve it directly by hand, eliminating the intermediate link, hehe, wash your hands before eating.

India

I can only say that the world is full of miracles!

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People have three urgent needs, so how did the ancients solve the problem of going to the toilet?

If we want to solve the problem of going to the toilet now, it is very convenient. Every family has toilets, and public places also have public toilets. But how did the ancients solve the problem of going to the toilet?

In ancient times, people directly used pigsty as toilet. People live in the main house, and the pigsty is built next to it. So the ancients also called the toilet a toilet house, that is, the place to solve the problem of defecation was in a corner. In ancient times, people called going to the toilet to change clothes or go to the toilet, while people called the toilet a toilet because the toilet was made of thatch. Call the bathroom to relieve myself. Peeing is called peeing, or convenient.

In ancient times, you went to the toilet, unlike now, there was toilet paper. At that time, before the invention of paper, I wiped my ass with the toilet. There is also a special kind of bamboo or wood chips called toilet paper. In ancient times, the sanitary treatment was not good, and the smell of toilets was very bad, so people blocked their nostrils with dates when they went to the toilet. It's called toilet dates. During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, rich people put dried dates in lacquer boxes.

The problem of ordinary people going to the toilet is easy to solve, so how does the royal court deal with it? According to historical records, there were no jade articles in the palace of the Han Dynasty that were held by the attendants around the emperor for convenience. This kind of thing with nothing is called toilet and urinal by later generations. Later, in the Tang Dynasty, it was renamed beast or horse, and later changed to toilet or urinal. When Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin captured Sichuan, he brought back a basin inlaid with agate and jade in Houshu Palace, which was almost used for drinking water. He was reminded that this was the urinal used by the emperor at that time. Zhao Kuangyin sighed: "It is reasonable to use such a urinal and not die." Then he smashed the washbasin.

In the Qing dynasty, according to historical records, the emperor did not go to the toilet outside the house, but the eunuch sent the toilet to the house. The toilet is made of silver or tin, surrounded by wooden stools, and the bucket is sprinkled with incense ashes.

You can see the difference between the royal family and the people from the equipment used to go to the toilet. No wonder everyone wants to be an emperor, but not everyone has such a rich life. After social stability, the ancient emperors began to covet pleasure and turned a blind eye to state affairs. As a result, the mountains and rivers laid by our ancestors were destroyed by the later emperor.