Everyone celebrates the ancient Romans for giving the world things like the aqueduct, education, and other stuff like that, but a study published in early April suggests the Renaissance Romans were just as weird as their ancestors were brilliant.
Researchers digging around a Renaissance-era (16th century) medical waste dump near the area of Caesar’s Forum in Rome came across a whole heap of old medical supplies, including urine flasks, according to a study published in the journal Antiquity. Caesar’s Forum was built in 46 B.C. and later became a neighbor to the Ospedale dei Fornari — Rome’s “Bakers’ Hospital” — whose workers used the dump for all sorts of crazy things.
Ancient ‘urine flasks’ for smelling (and tasting) pee uncovered in trash dump at Caesar’s forum in Rome https://t.co/cZBw6NW6BQ
— Kristina Killgrove (@DrKillgrove) May 1, 2023
During investigations of the excavations at the site, at least half of the glass vessels recovered are thought to be matula, or “urine flasks.” These pee cups were part of the normalized practice of uroscopy, a diagnosis process for old-timey doctors, LiveScience described.
“The patient’s urine would be poured into a flask to allow a doctor to observe its color, sedimentation, smell, and sometimes even taste,” one of the study authors noted in the research paper. (RELATED: Ancient Large-Scale Mining Discovery Near Lake Superior Starts To Rewrite Native American History)
Apparently the smell and taste of urine is a great way to diagnose conditions like diabetes, kidney disease, and others, the outlet noted. While the field of archaeology goes through its own renaissance, with new evidence seemingly appearing every day that extends our understanding of ancient human development, this latest find suggests we did some pretty weird stuff in our more recent past.
At least this bizarre discovery gives us all a tiny degree of hope for when the next cataclysm hits and the concept of healthcare finally gets destroyed (not that it’s very good now). In our post-apocalyptic landscape after social decline has truly taken its toll, we can check on our health by sniffing pee. Or just not, and hope for the best. Whatever you want!