History of Sanitation

38 HISTORY OF SANITATION Ruins of the Baths of Caracalla, Rome tub, but served only to hold the water which was applied to the bather by an attendant, who dashed or poured, as cir- cumstances required, a vessel full of water on his head or body. Both woodcuts shown were reproduced from ancient Greek vases and convey a fair idea of the way these baths were used. One of the bathers is shown with an iron, bone, bronze or ivory instrument called a strigihs, in his hand, which was used to scrape off perspiration when the bather emerged from the hot room, or induced a flow by exercising in the gymnasium, which was generally connected with the baths. The inscription on the woodcut, representing men bathing, shows that this was a public bath, and is probably the earliest picture of a bathing establishment extant. The women’s bath bowl differed but slightly from the men’s. It was a trifle lower and considerably deeper, but the method of using was the same as for the men. While the Greeks were prior to the Romans in the use of the bath, they considered it effeminate to use warm