2,200-Year-Old Flush Toilet Found at Chinese Ruins

Part of the ruins in which the toilet was found. (Image: China Academy of Social Sciences) We often consider flushing toilets a modern marvel, rivaled only by other essential comforts such as electricity and on-demand hot water. But while we may have perfected the flushing toilet, it’s anything but new technology. Archaeologists in China have uncovered a 2,200-year-old toilet that once flushed, suggesting that the plumbing we often take for granted has existed far longer than originally thought.

A team at the China Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of Archaeology uncovered the toilet at palace ruins in Yueyang City. Yueyang is a common tourist destination thanks to its 2,500 years of history, which visitors enjoy through its ancient pavilions and towers. Now Yueyang has one more claim to fame: the oldest-known flush toilet.

Xinhua News Agency reported that the archaeologists were excavating two palace buildings when they located the plumbing. Their findings consisted of part of a toilet seat and a pipe that led toward an outdoor sewage pit. (Pits like these, thanks to gravity, were used around the world as far back as 6,000 years ago.) The upper portion of the toilet seat was nowhere to be found.

The archaeologists reconstructed the toilet. According to ancient tools expert Fan Mingyang, the system was “deceptively advanced,” possessing a flush water drainage system not terribly unlike today’s toilets. Given the toilet is estimated to be between 2,200 and 2,400 years old, its mechanics challenge commonly held notions about historical plumbing, especially in regard to sewage management. To use the toilet, someone would have sat on or squatted over the seat (the rest of which is still outstanding). After doing their business, someone would have had to pour buckets of water into the toilet to flush away waste.

One of the four tiles found at the palace ruins. (Image: China Academy of Social Sciences)

Based on the toilet’s location and the fact that it required some labor to operate, the archaeologists believe the system was a luxury reserved for high-ranking members of society. Yueyang’s palaces served as the capital of the Qin state back in the 4th century BC during China’s Warring States era. Given that Duke Xian and Duke Xiao ruled during that period, it’s possible the palaces’ upscale sewage system was used by them and their families. Use could have also extended into the Han Dynasty.

“It is the first and only flush toilet to be ever unearthed in China,” archaeologist Liu Rui told China Daily. “The flush toilet is concrete proof of the importance the ancient Chinese attached to sanitation.”

The team also found four large and intricate tiles in the building where the toilet was found. One tile was found in each corner. So far, no particular meaning has been attached to the tiles’ appearance or placement.

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