The Viking Toilet

I'm sure I wouldn't want to sit on this one. The term Viking is used to refer to Norse explorers, warriors, merchants and pirates who raided, traded and explored in large areas of Europe, Asia and North Atlantic Islands, from the late 8th to mid 11th century. Highly romanticized, common depictions show Vikings as being brutes or intrepid barbaric adventurers, with horned helmets and drinking out of goblets made of skulls. However, historians have not been able to prove conclusively these misconceptions, and no preserved horned helmet was every found.

Interesting enough, according to the BBC Primary History site, there were no bathrooms in the Viking home. Most people probably washed in a wooden bucket or the nearest stream. Instead of toilets, people used cesspits, which are holes dug outside for toilet waste. How did they keep the smell and unsightly view from passerby's? They built a fence around the cesspit. Many of these cesspits have been found by archeologists studying Viking remains.

Sources: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/vikings/vikings_at_home/ and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking

 

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