History of Sanitation

44 HISTORY OF SANITATION Upon quitting the bath, it was usual for the Romans, as well as the Greeks, to be anointed with oil; indeed, after bathing, both sexes anointed themselves, the women as well as the men, in order that the skin might not be left harsh and rough, especially after hot water. Oil is the only ointment mentioned by Homer as used for this pur- pose, and Pliny says the Greeks had no better ointment at the time of the Trojan war than oil perfumed with herbs. A particular habit of body or tendency to certain com- plaints, sometimes required the order to be reversed and the anointment to take place before bathing. For this reason, Augustus, who suffered from nervous disorders, was accustomed to anoint himself before bathing, and a similar practice was adopted by Alexander Severus. The most usual practice, however, seems to have been to take some gentle exercise in the first instance, and then after bathing to be anointed either in the sun or in the tepid or thermal chamber, and finally to take their food. The Romans did not content themselves with a single bath of hot or cold water, but they went through a course of baths in succession, in which the agency of air as well as water was applied. It is difficult to ascertain the precise order in which the course was usually taken, if indeed there was any general practice beyond the whim of the individual. Under medical treatment, of course, the suc- cession would be regulated by the nature of the disease for which a cure was sought, and would vary also according to the different practice of different physicians. It is certain, however, that it was a general practice to close the pores and brace the body after the excessive perspiration of the vapor bath, either by pouring cold water over the head, or by plunging at once into the tank. Musa, the physician of Augustus, is said to have introduced the practice which became quite the fashion, in consequence of the benefit which the emperor derived from it, though Dion accuses him of having artfully caused the death of Marcellus by an improper application of the same treatment. In other cases it was considered conducive to health to pour warm