Multiple flushing toilets have been discovered during excavations at a centuries-old royal palace in South Korea.
But one of them stands out ahead of the others: the toilet, which the crown prince is thought to have used privately, was equipped with a system that discharges waste directly into a nearby river.
1,300-Year-Old Royal Toilets
The remains of multiple flushing toilets have been found in a 1,300-year-old palace complex in South Korea. Although the existence of the palace has been known for a long time, the new excavations offer more information about this complex and reveal the presence of flushing toilets.
”These flushing toilets are the first of their kind in Korea, ” said archaeologist Kim Gyeong Yeol of the Korea Cultural Heritage Service, who is on the team leading the excavations.
These toilets did not work like modern flush toilets; instead, probably a janitor was pouring water and making the waste flow. The water was carrying the waste out by discharging it through canals.
The Crown Prince’s Private Toilet
One of the toilets uncovered during the excavations “has an evacuation system that discharges human waste directly into the river,” says Kim. Other flush toilets were located in structures outside the palace and accumulated feces inside.
Kim says that this special toilet, which discharges directly into the river, has meaning in terms of social hierarchy. He notes that this toilet may have been used by the crown prince and the palace women who were closest to him.
The “Donggung” Palace takes its name from the word meaning ”crown prince”. According to the Korean Cultural Heritage Service, this palace was built in 674 AD, along with the “Woji Pond” located next to it. This period was the beginning of the “Unified Silla Period” (668-935 AD) of the Kingdom of Silla, which ruled a large part of the Korean Peninsula.
Previous excavations have uncovered the remains of at least 26 buildings at this site, as well as many artifacts such as bowls, plates and bricks with floral patterns.
Who Used the Siphon First?
Although these flush toilets are the first in Korea, they are not the first flush toilets in the world. according to a study conducted in 2016, it is known that flush toilets were used in the Indus Valley Civilization located within the borders of modern-day Pakistan.
The Indus Valley Civilization developed between 2,600 and 1,900 BC, that is, close to the period when the pyramids in Egypt were built Dec. According to the study, flush toilets in the Indus Valley were connected to a sewer network that transported waste to the drainage system.
Although today the British are cited as the inventors of modern flush toilets, they developed these systems at a much later period. in 1596, Sir John Harrington was married to Queen Elizabeth I. He invented an early flush toilet for Elizabeth. This system was a primitive version of today’s modern toilets, which discharged waste into pits.
But this model did not have an S-twist, which was causing bad smells to return. In addition, it required 28 liters of water to flush a siphon.