You Won’t Believe These Facts About Pompeii

When most of us hear of Pompeii, we think of the devastating volcanic eruption that destroyed the ancient Roman city. However, not many of us know about actual day to day life in the city.

Let’s take a look at these 25 shocking facts about life and death from this remarkable ancient civilization.

Pompeii Was a Holiday Destination for Rich Romans

Many of ancient Rome’s elite came to Pompeii on vacation. In fact, a lot of the rich from the capital had their own holiday villas here. Similar to modern day Vegas, holiday makers came to this seaside city to gamble, drink and hook up!

They Had a Modern Plumbing System

Ancient Roman cities are renowned for their complex sanitation systems. They are considered to be one of the first civilizations to have a modern running water system.

These stone built sewers would wash waste from the public latrines down to the nearest river or stream.

They Had Public Toilets for Socializing

These concrete slabs with holes in them were the city’s public toilets/social hangouts. Locals would sit here chatting amongst each other with zero privacy while they did their business.

They Had Open Sewers On the Streets

It is believed that the streets of Pompeii had quite a distinct aroma going through them. When people didn’t use the public latrines, they relieved themselves at home into a bucket and yep, you guessed it, threw the contents of the bucket into the drains located on either side of the road.