ANCIENT Romans used human poo to treat common ailments, archaeologists have revealed.
The grim discovery is the first direct evidence that the ancient civilisation really was keeping human faeces in the proverbial medicine cabinet.
It’s no secret that ancient Greeks and Romans had written about using faeces in medicine.
But this discovery is the clearest sign yet that they really were using faeces.
Specifically, researchers say that these ancient plops may have been used to treat infections or inflammation.
“Fecal-based pharmacological treatments are widely attested in Greco-Roman medical texts,” said lead author Dr Cenker Atila, of Turkey‘s Sivas Cumhuriyet University.
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“Yet no direct chemical evidence has until now supported their practical application.”
The discovery was made using an ancient Roman glass vial that dates back around 1,900 years.
It was one of a number of vials that had been collected in Turkey‘s Bergama Museum.
And it turned out that they were hiding an incredible ancient medical secret – human poop.
“The use of faeces as a form of treatment was known in the ancient Egyptian, Chinese, Greek, and Roman worlds, based on written sources,” Dr Atila told The Sun.
“However, until now there had been no archaeological evidence of this practice.
“Our study has, for the first time, proven its existence archaeologically.”
Scientists were able to analyse the brown flakes found inside the vial to see what had been stored inside.
And it revealed not only evidence of human poop – but also thyme, which may have been used to mask the dodgy scent.
“The vessel’s contents revealed a distinctive blend of human fecal biomarkers,” Atila wrote.
“And aromatic compounds such as carvacrol, a major constituent of thyme oil.
“These results align with classical prescriptions that combined dung with odour-masking agents to enhance patient compliance.”
The vial was found inside a tomb in Pergamon, an ancient city that’s located in modern-day Turkey.
It began as an ancient Greek city, but eventually came under the control of Rome.
The city was extensively redesigned under Roman emperor Trajan in the early 2nd century.
And it was home to renowned physician Galen of Pergamon, who ranks alongside Hippocrates in terms of physicians from antiquity.
Galen himself had made mention of the benefits of faeces (both animal and human) in medicine.
“In the later Greco-Roman tradition, authors such as Dioscorides, Pliny the Elder, and Galen classified dung-based treatments for conditions ranging from inflammation and infection to reproductive disorders,” Atila explained.
“Although often discussed with euphemism or caution, such substances were not necessarily perceived as repulsive or irrational.
“Rather, they occupied a liminal space in ancient pharmacology −considered potent and efficacious, yet also symbolically and sensorially charged.”
Galen also recommended the use of “aromatic herbs, resins, and oils” for treating disease – as well as warding off “malevolent forces”.
Now researchers hope to examine other vessels to see if they can make any more discoveries.
“Our research on this topic is ongoing,” Dr Atila told The Sun.
“We are currently examining other glass and ceramic artifacts housed in museums in Türkiye and collecting samples from those that contain residues.
“We hope to obtain more compelling and interesting results in the future.”
This research was published in the Journal of Archaeological Science.
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