Archaeological Evidences of Toilet System in Ancient India · mentioned in Panini’s Ashtadhyayi. The above rules are for urination and defecation in the day time. In the night,

Archaeological Evidences of Toilet System in Ancient

India

Sachin Kr. Tiwary1 and Shubham Saurabh2

1. Department of Ancient Indian History Culture and Archaeology, Faculty of

Arts, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi – 221 005, Uttar Pradesh, India (Email:

[email protected]) 2. Department of A.I.H.C. and Archaeology, Deccan College Postgraduate and Research

Institute, Pune – 411 006, Maharashtra, India (Email: shubhamsaurabh31@ gmail.com)

Received: 09 October 2018; Revised: 04 November 2018; Accepted: 01 December 2018

Heritage: Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology 6 (2018): 764‐781

Abstract: The word ʹtoiletʹ is considered as a taboo in our society. Our history is almost silent about the

toilet habits of our ancestors, while it is as much important as eating, bathing, sleeping etc. in our lifestyle.

Present paper is focused on the materialistic evidence of toilet system in ancient India, although the brief

introduction starts with the sanitary system in world context also. Authors are trying to elaborate about

the importance of sanitation in human life style, previous work done, an Archaeological contextual

evidences and literary context of sanitary description from many Puranas and Smritis, medium of toilet

pans, its contexts simultaneously special attention made on the sanitary practices in the Indus‐Saraswati

River Valley Civilization as the earliest evidence of toilet system noticed in this civilization and at the end

the periodical description of each historical periods of India with examples from UP and Bihar like; Vaishali,

Vikramshila, Manikpurchaur and Rajghat are considered in detail.

Keywords: Toilet, Sanitation, Archaeology, India, Roman Civilization, Swachh Bharat

Abhiyan, Excavation

Introduction The intellectual concept of toilet system in ancient India is one of the most important

chapters, which needs more attention. Many a times one is amazed that the toilet issue

is not given much attention in the ancient literatures! The answer will be; that it relates

to human behaviour which is one of the important daily routines of our life. Is it

important to highlight the daily lifestyle of a human in literature? This is not as much

important as the defeat and victory for a kingdom and a king. But here we are looking

at the common people of our society in the past and present. A toilet practice has been

an integral part of our daily routine and as such it needs to be studied closely. Though,

it is not as important as expansion of an empire, even then we find passing references of

toilet system in literatures and even in an archaeological context. The basic

understanding is to show that we are discussing about our past life practices like; how

our past was glorious, how our ancestors were aware about the link between life and

Tiwary and Saurabh 2018: 764‐781

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health, society and environment towards the toilet system. A very few people who dared

to talk about the toilet openly in past, were declared lunatic and were socially excluded.

Even the galaxy of excavators from all over the world is silent about this important

aspect of human society. This important part of our daily routine became a taboo because

of our conservative thinking, which hinders the development process and pulls us back.

If we go through the historicity of toilets, it reaches back to the Pre‐historic period, when

man started living in a shelter. It was a movie Caveman released in 1981 which was

written and directed by Carl Gottlieb. In this movie after 1 hour and 39 minutes one can

see their sanitation habit which is shown just outside the cave. The purpose is not to

highlight about the movie, it is about their sanitation system which is based on a

hypothesis shown in the movie. Though a person cannot stay at a place where he

defecates, in this movie they are shown to defecate just outside their shelter. As man

settled at a particular place, he used to defecate at a place not very far from his shelter

and water body. In later times, he might have built a toilet made up of grasses and

woods. But, being perishable in nature there is no evidence of it left. The evidence of

toilet or sanitation system is noticed both from Archaeological context and literary

context. Here for toilet system we are using the terms sanitation, toilet pan and so on for

holistic understanding about cleanliness in past.

Swachh Bharat Abhiyan which is formed to create awareness among every Indian to keep

our society clean. We see people create nuisance, litter in public and make our

surrounding dirty. The aim of this campaign is to reduce these activities and notify the

concerned authorities to do the needful. In light of the above it is important to highlight

whether this is for the first time when some known leader is starting a campaign with

this aim that we should clean our surroundings and our society. As, this campaign was

started in the memory of the Father of India, Mahatma Gandhi on 2nd Oct. 2014 and

announced from the wall of the medieval heritage building, the Red Fort by Mr.

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India. Gandhi ji was the first leading man of modern

India who generated awareness among the Indian masses. The India has a glorious past

as the earliest flushed toilet system was reported during archaeological studies from

Harappan Civilization. We Indians are well aware about our identity, through the

Puranas, Smritis and Arthashastra literatures that talk much about our glorious past.

Preceding Researches A. K. Narain (1976: 57‐61), T. N. Roy (1987: 341‐350), B. P. Sinha (1985: 24‐28) and Jalaj

Tiwary (2016: 175‐179) studied the sanitation system of ancient India in archaeological

context. Similarly, A. N. Angelakis et al. (2005: 210‐220) and G. P. Antoniou (2007: 155‐

164) have studied ancient sanitation system in the Greece whereas E. Akın (2008) studied

about the toilets from the ancient Babylon; Mr. Zia, Harter, Heirbaut, Peeters, Jansen,

Koloski‐Ostrow are working for Roman toilet system; D. D. Mara (1985) has also worked

in Indian context for Indus Civilization toilet and Melda Genç (2009) who did his master

research in management context for toilet. Inspite of all scholars above and their

researches there are some galaxy of scholars working on sanitation in the context of ring

well which are plenty in the historical context of Indian archaeology. Bindeshwar Pathak

ISSN 2347 – 5463Heritage: Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology 6: 2018

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(1995) of Sulabh International Museum also tried his best to create awareness about the

toilet system in India.

Figure 1: Kinds of Toilets

Types and Medium of Toilet Nature of toilet system in India from its past to present can be broadly divided in to two

i.e. Inside the structure and outside near to the habitational area in open ground or under

the open sky. For more and accurate classification (Figure 1) we divided this practice in

to three categories:

Flushed Toilet: The user sits on the seat and this type is reported from Indus

Civilization.

Squat Toilet: The user puts his feet on the rests and squats. This can be further divide

into two subtypes.

o For Single User ‐ This kind of toilet is reported from all over the world right from 5000

BP to 1000 BP such as Mohenjodaro, Lothal (Ghosh, 1989:248), Rajghat, Vaishali,

Manikpurchaur etc.

o For Group of Users‐This kind of toilet is reported from several countries and cultures like Roman and Greece, it is rare but reported from Vikramshila, Bhagalpur of Bihar.

Open Toilets: As by using lota or any pot for carrying water. It can be divided into two

groups; (a) defecate in the pit temporarily created for the purpose, (b) defecate on the


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ground without pit. For many years in the United States (Dindal, Levitan, 1977:577‐580),

outdoor toilets were a commonplace. Some are still in use in wilderness areas and rural

sites. Due to anaerobic conditions within the soil pits filled with human wastes, many of

the associated characteristics such as foul odours and potential health hazards have

caused this toilet system to be very unpopular. Also, ground water supplies in close

proximity to these units have been contaminated.

Regarding its material usually a person generally used locally available material for the

construction. Hence, the material used for the building of toilet pans and rooms varies

from one site to another. The material includes:

o Stone slabs: This is still in practice in village area.

o Terracotta slabs and Ring wells: This was in practice since early historic phase as it is

reported from Rajghat (Roy, 1987:344). According to T.N.Roy this kind of evidence

are reported from Hastinapura, Bangarh (Goswami, 1948:8), Brahmanabad during

Pala period, Nevasa and Rairh while excavations.

o Simple and wedge shape bricks covered with stone slabs or wooden slabs/seats: This

is still in practice among the hilly inhabitants.

o Pits covered with wooden slabs/seats on top: This is also still in practice among the

undeveloped inhabitants. Though, it is also reported during excavation from Rajghat

in the Early Phase of NBPW (Roy, 1987:342). This kind of practice also noticed from

Kausambi (IAR 1955‐56:20), Taxila, Sravasti (Sinha 1967:17) and Rajgir but

unfortunately that is marked only as a pit. The purposes of these pits were not

recognized at that time.

Literature Review The talks about toilet were not a taboo for our scholars of past. The description about

sanitation and toilet are much discussed in the ancient literature of India. It is mentioned

in Vedic‐Pauranic literatures like Vishnu Purana, Narada Purana, Padma Purana,

Manusmriti, and Buddhist literature like Vinaya Pitaka. The toilet and the sanitary system

have been very well illustrated in the above said literatures. In Vedic literature codes of

toilet for different varnas have been mentioned. The code of conduct for toilets and

sanitation has been described in Manusmriti as follows:

“Let him not throw urine or faeces into the water, nor saliva, nor (clothes) defiled by

impure substances, nor any other (impurity), nor blood, nor poisonous things” (Chapter

4.56). “He who desires to be pure, must clean the organ by one (application of) earth, the

anus by (applying earth) three (times), the (left) hand alone by (applying it) ten (times),

and both (hands) by (applying it) seven (times)” (Chapter 5.136). “Such is the

purification ordained for householders; (it shall be) double for students, triple for

hermits, but quadruple for ascetics” (Chapter 5.137). “But he who, except in a case of

extreme necessity, drops filth on the king’s high‐road, shall pay two karshapanas and


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immediately remove (that) filth” (Chapter 9.282). “But a person in urgent necessity, an

aged man, a pregnant woman, or a child, shall be reprimanded and clean the (place);

that is a settled rule” (Chapter 9.283). ʺAll physicians who treat (their patients) wrongly

(shall pay) a fine; in the case of animals, the first (or lowest); in the case of human beings,

the middlemost (amercement)” (Chapter 9.284). “He who destroys a bridge, the flag (of

a temple or royal palace), a pole, or images, shall repair the whole (damage) and pay five

hundred (panas)” (Chapter 9.285).

Karshapana and Pana are ancient unstamped and stamped metallic pieces of money

whose validity depended on the integrity of the person authenticating them. It is

mentioned in Panini’s Ashtadhyayi. The above rules are for urination and defecation in

the day time. In the night, the frequency of wash etc is reduced by half. If one is

travelling, the rules are further reduced by half. If one is sick, the rules need to be

observed as per capacity. Similar chant is observed from the Narada Purana. In Vishnu

Purana, some rules are laid down for the post‐defecation stage as “... urination ought to

be done at least at a distance of 10 cubits from the source of water. Defecation should be

done at a distance of 100 cubits from the source of water. At least 40 cubits (The cubit is

an ancient unit of length that had several definitions according to each of the various

different cultures that used the unit which are ranged between 444 mm and 529.2 mm.)

distance is to be observed while urinating near a river or a temple and defection at least

at a distance of 400 cubits. Urination and Defection ought not to be done in running

water or river. Water should be taken in hand and washed away from the river...”. Even

in many chapters of the Kautilyaʹs Arthashastra one can observed the intellectual

description about toilet and sanitation rules and regulations. He wrote in Chapter VIII

about the rules related to Buildings “If a pit, steps, water‐course, ladder, dung‐hill, or,

any other parts of a house offer or cause annoyance to outsiders, or in any way obstruct

the enjoyment of others,, or cause water to collect and thereby injure the wall of a

neighbouring house, the owner shall be punished with a fine of 12 panas. If the

annoyance is due to faeces and urine, the fine shall be double the above. The water‐

course or gutter shall offer free passage for water; otherwise the fine shall be 12 panas

(Shamasastry 1915: 240).”

As per the description of Chapter XIX about the Assault “When a person touches with

hand, mud, ashes or dust the body of another person below the naval, he shall be

punished with a fine of 3 panas; with some but unclean things, with the leg, or spittle, 6

panas; with saliva (Chhardi), urine, faeces, etc. 12 panas” (Shamasastry,1915:277). In the

Chapter XXXVI about The duty of a City Superintendent, “Whoever carelessly sets fire

(to a house) shall be fined 54 panas; but he who intentionally sets fire (to a house) shall

be thrown into fire”. Whoever throws dirt in the street shall be punished with a fine of

1/8th of a pana; whoever causes mire or water to collect in the street shall be fined ¼th

of a pana; whoever commits the above offences in the kingʹs road shall be punished with

double the above fines. Whoever excretes faeces in places of pilgrimage, reservoirs of

water, temples, and royal buildings shall be punished with fines rising from one pana

and upwards in the order of the offences; but when such excretions are due to the use of


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medicine or to disease no punishment shall be imposed. Whoever throws inside the city

the carcass of animals such as a cat, dog, mangoose, and a snake shall be fined 3 panas;

of animals such as an ass, a camel, a mule, and cattle shall be fined 6 panas; and human

corpse shall be punished with a fine of 50 panas” (Shamasastry,1915:209). We can see

Kautilya’s views regarding toilet and sanitation during Mauryan times in Table 1.

Table 1: Charges for Using Urinals and Latrines during Maurya Time

Sl. No. Place Urinal Latrine

1. Holy Place ½ pana 1 pana

2. Water Reservoir 1 pana 2 pana

3. Temple 1½ pana 3 pana

4. Royal Building 2 pana 4 pana

This is the absolute evidence of that time both for a royal family and common mass.

Through these evidences we can understand about glorious and much intellectual past.

After literary evidence now, it is time to discuss about archaeological evidence. Though

it is very difficult but there are certain trances of toilet in physical forms too.

Toilets in World Context The first authenticity of toilets belongs to the Indus‐Saraswati Valley Civilisation (ISVC)

dating back to 3rd millennium BCE (Mara, 1985). Some scholars believe that the people

of Minoan civilisation dated 2700 to 1400 BCE, of Aegean Bronze Age civilisation on the

island of Crete and other Aegean islands (Ancient Greece and today’s Turkey), were the

first to use toilets. One of the first known toilets that were flushed with water is found at

the palace at Knossos (Figure 2) on the island of Crete (Ancient Greece) in the Bronze

Age (Camard, 2015:288‐291). The evidence of first simple toilets has been found in

Mesopotamia (located in between Iran and Jordan politically and Caspean sea on the

north, Persian sea on the east and Meditarian sea on the west and south geographically)

but their frequency was very low. Building of toilets in China began in around 500 BCE

in the reign of Eastern Zhou dynasty dated c. 1046 BCE to 256 BCE but was used only by

rich people. It is interesting to know that in China the toilet pot was used for long times

as the royal family members use the toilet pot made of terracotta. After defecating in the

pot their servants use to throw outside of the habitation area.

Private and Public toilets have also been found in the Roman civilisation (Zia

et.al.,2006:631‐640; Harter, et.al., 2004:579‐584; Heirbaut, et.al., 2011:7‐20; Peeters, et.al.,

2009; Jansen, et.al., 2011; Koloski‐Ostrow, 2015) dated c. 753 BCE to 476 CE. A whole set

of community toilets are found at the Roman site such as Herculaneum (Figure 3)

(located in the Ercolan, Italy) (Jones, 2005:80, Jansen, 1991:145‐166), Old Sarum (located

in present England) and Ostia Antica (located in present Italy) (Figure 4). Here, each seat

had a hole, and water kept flowing to flush away the excreta. The Roman goddess

Fortuna was believed to protect latrine users from dangers; hence many latrines from

Pompeii (Figure 5) had small shrines (Figure 6) of her on the wall of the latrine rooms

and common hall.


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Figure 2: Toilet at the Palace at Knossos, Island of Crete

(Courtesy: https://www.nature.com/news/the‐secret‐history‐of‐ancient‐toilets‐1.19960)

Figure 3: (a) Private Toilet and (b) Broken Terracotta Pipes, Herculaneum

(Courtesy: http://theconversation.com)


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Figure 4: (a) Communal Toilets, Ostia Antica, Italy (b) Conjectural View


Figure 5: Plan of Communal and Private Toilets at Pompeii

(Courtesy: https://images.theconversation.com)


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Figure 6: Roman Goddess Fortuna and Warning Inscription to Toilet Users


Toilets in the Indus Civilization The use of toilets in ancient India had a great impact on Indians as well as on other

civilisations and other historical time periods. Indus Civilization was prominent in

hydraulic engineering and had many water supply and sanitation device that were the

first of their kind. Among other things, they contain the worldʹs earliest system of flush

toilets, with a number of courtyard houses having both a washing platform and a

dedicated toilet waste disposal hole. The toilet hole would be flushed by emptying a jar

of water, drawn from the houseʹs central well, through a clay brick pipe and into a shared

brick drain, which would feed into an adjacent soak pit. The out flow from the houses

went into an ingenious municipal sewage system. There were also pipe on the roof of

the houses to carry rain water down to the sewage system where toilet system went as

well. Terracotta pipe in walls allowed drainage of water and in some case there was also

provisions of a crib for sitting in toilet. The sewage was then led into cesspools, built at

the intersection of two drains which had strain leading to them for periodic cleaning.

Private bathrooms, located on the ground floor, were found in nearly all the houses of

Harappa and Mohenjo‐Daro (Figure 7). The latrine is often incorporated in the outside

wall of the bathing platforms, sometimes fitted with its own vertical chute through


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which the sewage fell either directly into the street drain or into a cesspit. A larger brick

or wooden plank for sitting on was placed across a pair of raised side supports. But

latrines of the simple type still widely used in the region today were also found,

consisting merely of a hole in the ground above a cesspit (Jansen, 1989:189). This is one

of the most important and earliest evidence of such private lavatories in the world.

ʺWestern‐Style” toilets were made from brick using toilet seats probably made of wood.

Figure7: (a) Flush Toilet and (b) Squat Toilet, Mohenjodaro

(Courtesy: www.harappa.com)

In the remains of Indus Civilization in India, at a place called Lothal (Figure 8) around

in 2500 BCE the people had water‐born toilet in each house which was linked with the

drains covered with burnt clay bricks. To facilitate the operation and maintenance, it had

man‐hole covers, chambers etc. After the sewage drained to the main street, it ran out of

city and was washed away during the rainy season. It was the finest form of sanitary

engineering. But with the decline of Indus Civilization, the science of sanitary and toilet

engineering probably disappeared from India. Probably it was in practice but due to

non‐availability of this facility in archaeological context we are not in position to say its

authenticity. If it was in practice so it is possible that it was in the practice on perishable

material only. From then on, the toilet in India remained primitive and open defecation

became rampant.


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Figure 8: Bathroom/Toilet in a House, Lothal

(Courtesy: http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Lothal)

From the End of Indus Civilization to Pre‐Mauryan Period A new civilisation which came into existence after the decline of Indus Civilization was

Vedic civilisation. The basis of Vedic civilisation was totally different from Indus

Civilization as this was rural in nature compared to the urban civilisation of Indus

Civilization. Hence, the people of Vedic period lead a simple and some sort of primitive

lifestyle. The society was primarily agrarian. They domesticated animals and lived in

forest villages. As time passes, they also started developing a civil society infrastructure.

Now, they did become aware of personal and community health and hygiene. They

understood that oneʹs personal and spiritual upliftment could be possible only after

being pure, heart and body. The Vedic people consider their home as the residing place

of God. They use to chant mantras and perform yajnas and rituals at their home. Hence,

there was no place for excreta in their home. No toilets were made during the Vedic

period as the sources reveal. These are mentioned in the ancient literatures which are

described above.

The society was developing day by day, new advancements in the field of agriculture

and tool making leads to the second urban revolution in India. This was the time when

Mahajanpadas came into existence. The ʹJanaʹ of the Aryans developed into much

powerful ʹMahajanpadasʹ. In this period, many palaces were erected but it seems that the

toilet practice remained the same as no evidence of toilet has been found in

archaeological excavations till now. It may be possible that the toilets were made up of


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perishable materials for ladies but had not been proven archaeologically. It is also

possible that we missed the evidenced because it is well known that the purpose of

excavation in early time; it was to recover the antiquities and identify the religious sites

on the basis of ancient texts. It might be possible that the practice of open‐air defecation

was prevalent in the society.

The Gupta Period The archaeological evidence of toilets in India after Indus Civilization is found in the

Gupta period (4th to 7th Century C.E.). This period is also known as the golden age in the

Indian history because of development of a completely different and progressive

building architecture, art, sculpture, literature and administration. The following sites

have the evidence of toilet in archaeological context.

Kutagarshala Vihar, Vaishali, Muzaffarpur, Bihar: Kutagarshala Vihar is in Kolhua

archaeological site. Kolhua is a Village in Saraiya Block in Muzaffarpur District of Bihar

State. The Kutagarshala represents the spot where Buddha used to stay during the rainy

seasons, spent at Vaishali. Excavations have exposed three phases of its construction.

Originally, it was a small Chaitya built during Shunga‐Kushana period. Subsequently,

it was enlarged in the second phase during the Gupta period. And finally in the third

phase, it was converted into a monastery by providing a number of partition walls.

Figure 9: Toilet Pan from Vaishali Museum, Displayed in Gallery No. 02


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Figure10: Conjectural Line Drawing of Toilet in Context of Ring Wells


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This twelve room monastery resembles a Swastika on the plan having three rooms on

each arm attached to a common veranda around an open central courtyard having

entrance towards the east. This monastery has a toilet chamber attached to its southern

wall. It was constructed during the Gupta period, probably for the Nuns. The fragments

of the Terracotta Toilet Pan (Figure 9) (Accession no.244) are displayed in the gallery no.

02 of Vaishali site museum of Archaeological Survey of India. The object is made for the

use of latrine. It is broken into three pieces having 88 cm in diameter and 07 cm in

thickness with two holes, the big one of 18 cm in dia. for face and second small one of 03

cm in dia. for urine. For the resting foot the little high relief is measured 24 cm length

and 13 cm width. It is probably fixed over the row of straight ring wells as rim periphery

(Figure 10) of the pan is slightly high as our today’s toilet pans. This is only one and rare

collection of such kind showing about the toilet system in ancient world.

Figure 11: Toilet in the Context of Ring Well from Manikpurchaur

Manikpur Chaur, Muzaffarpur, Bihar: Manikpur village is located in Minapur Tehsil

of Muzaffarpur district in Bihar, India. It is situated 10km away from sub‐district

headquarter Minapur and 20km away from district headquarter Muzaffarpur. S.K

Manjul, J.K. Tiwary and second author personally along with other staffs of the

Excavation Branch‐III, Patna of the ASI visited the site Manikpur Chaur. The area of this

site is approximately 500x500m. The site yielded Northern Black Slipped Ware, Black

Slipped Ware, Grey Ware and Red Ware. The noteworthy shapes encountered are

incurved bowls, vases, channel spouted basin, perforated legged basin, lid with central

cup, terracotta human and animal figurines, terracotta ghat shaped beads, sling balls,

dabber, wheels etc. Nineteen punch‐marked silver coins are also found at this site. But,

the most remarkable finding at the site is the availability of ring wells counting more

than nine in numbers. The site represents NBPW period to Post‐Gupta Period. The

terracotta rings are placed over one another so that they make a well‐like structure. Some


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of the ring wells are completely damaged. The fragments of a terracotta Toilet Pan slab

are found inside the ring well (Figure 11). This is same as the one displayed in Vaishali

Museum. This slab has a little hole in it and its other side has been destroyed. The soil

inside the ring well is a mixture of excrement and shit. The ring wells found in a cluster

shows that it was a public latrine place. A curtain might have been placed but has

perished in course of time. No more evidences of toilet have been found because

currently two brick kilns are running at the site. The finding is quite interesting as the

toilet pans along with ring wells are found in one context which proves the fact about its

usage. As the site is near Vaishali hence it also proves the authenticity of toilets in

Kutagarshala Vihar. This finding shows the enthusiasm of the inhabitants of Manikpur

about the hygiene and healthy toilet practices.

Figure12: Communal Toilet from Vikramshila, Bihar

The Pala Period Vikramshila Mahavihara, Bhagalpur, Bihar: Vikramshila mahavihara (8th to 12th Cen.

C.E.) was the celebrated university founded by Pala king Dharmpala in the late 8th

century C.E. It functioned for about four centuries before it collapsed in the beginning

of thirteenth century C.E. It is known to us mainly through Tibetan sources, especially

through the writings of Taranath, the Tibetan monk historian. Vikramshila was one of

the largest Buddhist Universities having more than hundred teachers and about one

thousand students. It produced eminent scholars who were often invited by foreign

countries to spread Buddhist learning, culture and religion. Subjects like Theology,

Philosophy, Grammar, Metaphysics, Logic etc. were taught here but the most important

branch of learning was ʹTantrismʹ.


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Meticulous excavations at the site, conducted initially by Patna University (1960‐69) and

subsequently by Archaeological Survey of India (1972‐82) revealed a square monastery

with a cruciform stupa in its centre, a library building and a cluster of votive stupas. To

the north of the monastery a number of scattered structures including a Tibetan and a

Hindu temple have been found. The entire spread is over an area of more than hundred

acres. There is also the evidence of toilets in the north‐western part of monastery. The

toilets were made in a row (Figure 12).

The structure was made up of bricks and toilet seats were absent. The source of water

was the tank situated near the library building. Some big terracotta vessels have been

found, perhaps used for carrying and storing water. The excreta go into the nearby soak

pit and fields. These evidences clearly show that the construction of toilets were in vogue

in Pala period.

Conclusion I think we were not very conscious to expose the traces of toilet and excavations were

conducted for getting massive and rare antiquities. This is one of the important reasons

why we could not get evidences of toilet practices in the past. The evidence must have

been at the site during excavations but due to different reasons the excavators could not

see those evidences. The other reason must be the lack of problem oriented excavation

for getting these evidences from the excavations. The sites are not exposed all the time

in horizontal forms; this may be one of the reason too. The significance of the present

article is to acknowledge the readers about the toilet habits which were prevalent in the

society of our ancestors. Starting from the Indus Civilization, it not only indicates the

hygiene practices of the people but also the framework of the society of that era. As in

Indus Civilization, the toilets are found in every house which shows that everyone was

provided the basic structural facilities. The Vedic society was a rural one but they were

very sensitive towards the healthy toilet habits. This is evident from the Vedic hymns,

which are prescribed for every toilet activities.

In later times, the toilet became a symbol of social status. Only Elite class was using the

toilets. Perhaps the custom of manual scavenging started in this era. Toilets not only

show the social condition but also the economy of that period. People used locally

available material for the construction of toilet pans. Wood and stone were used for

construction of toilets in Indus Civilization, terracotta slab was used at Kutagaarshala

Vihar in Vaishali as toilet seat, Terracotta rings and slabs were used in Manikpur Chaur

for its construction. A notable speciality of the toilets found at the sites, is their

indigenous origin. The toilets were made in different styles, as in Indus Civilization and

Vaishali, the structural and Terracotta toilet pans are found respectively. In Vaishali

circular terracotta pan with a hole in the centre was used and the same was in case of

Manikpur Chaur, here also the slabs were of terracotta. The structural toilets were built

in Vikramashila Monastery. It being different in structure and medium, the common

element of all the toilets was its objective. The toilets show the seriousness of the

constructor about the health and hygiene of the family and society.


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Acknowledgement The authors are thankful to Dr. Om Prakash for carefully going through the manuscript.

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