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When you think about it, one of the greatest innovations of all time is the ability to flush human waste clean away from where it can cause horrific diseases at worst and unsettling odors at least.

Civilizations started experimenting with different sewage systems far longer ago than you might realize, though, but Atlas Obscura is here to give credit where it’s richly deserved.

Neolithic Toilets of Skara Brae

SANDWICK, SCOTLAND

This small Neolithic settlement on the coast of Scotland is known for being one of the best-preserved in Europe. It was also likely an extremely clean village. Some of the earliest-known toilets and sewer systems have been found at this site, which was inhabited between 3100 and 2500 BC. Residents would have had lavatory-like plumbing systems fitted into the walls of their huts.

Deep tunnels, lined with tree bark to make them watertight, carried water from the roof and waste liquids from the connected huts to the ocean nearby…

Ancient City of Mohenjo-Daro

MOHENJO-DARO, PAKISTAN

The people of the Indus Valley in southeast Asia were also sticklers for cleanliness, as evidenced in the ruins of cities such as Mohenjo-Daro. Built around 2500 BC, it was one of the biggest cities of a sprawling settlement that was concentrated in the northwest of India and parts of Pakistan. It is one of the world’s earliest urban settlements, and home to the iconic Great Bath, an ancient public pool.

Residents of Mohenjo-Daro who preferred a more private spot for their ablutions had the option of bathing in washrooms in their own houses, located next to latrines on the street side. Some houses even had a second-floor washroom, as indicated by the remains of terracotta pipes and vents…

Full story at Atlas Obscura.

Modern conveniences, ancient times.

Photo credit: DOMINIC ALVES/CC BY 2.0