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(E2) 9A: Cavē Canem

Hover over each panel for vocabulary hints.

(NB: Hints are provided for verba ūtilia and phrases or grammatical concepts that have not yet been covered by this unit. Hints are not provided for verba necessāria or grammatical concepts that have been covered by this unit.)

hoc this

prōmittō, prōmittere to promise

venēnum, venēnī, n. poison

You know all these words! No hints needed.

saliō, salire to leap, to jump

lātrīna, lātrīnae, f. toilet, public bathroom

līberī children

ē/ex out of

lātrīna, lātrīnae, f. toilet, public bathroom

līberī children

fūfae! yuck!

You know all these words! No hints needed.

īnsānus/a/um wild, insane

Ad Fontēs

These public latrines at Ostia are some of the best- preserved ancient Roman toilets in the world. There are a few differences between our toilets and the ancient Roman ones. The bench running along the walls is made of marble, and the walls would have been decorated with beautiful frescoes. The Romans didn’t have much privacy or walls between their toilet seats like we do in most public bathrooms today.

Ancient toilets didn’t flush, and so they might be a bit like a modern port-a-potty. However, waste wouldn’t just pile up below. Instead, it would go into the sewer system via a small stream of water running between the toilets.

Another big difference is that the Romans did not have toilet paper! They used a shared brush or sponge on a stick, known as a tersorium. It was made by putting a natural sponge from the Mediterranean Sea on the end of a stick. The Romans would wipe themselves, then rinse the tersorium off in a bucket filled with water, vinegar, or salt water.

Does this sound very clean? It’s no wonder that the latrines were a breeding ground for bacteria! In fact, scientists have found traces of awful diseases (whipworm, roundworm, and the parasite causing dysentery) in ancient Roman toilets.

An ancient Roman lavatory in Ostia Antica, Italy

Notae