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I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

going-medieval.com

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Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#141

Post by zwirbl »

Archelaos wrote: post #59
simonsarris wrote: post #2

ughh I dislike when pop history takes this smarmy tone and is also not particularly accurate. > In fact soap is a motherfucking medieval invention. Yes. It is. The Romans – whomst I don’t see a bunch of basics going around accusing of being filthy – did not, in fact have soap, in contrast. They usually washed using oil. Medieval people? Oh you better believe that they had soap. Wait a minute, what about Aleppo soap?…

> ... and Wikipedia alleges the same in their article: >> Although it has been claimed that soap-making was introduced to the West from the Levant after the First Crusades, in fact, soap was known to the Romans in the first century AD and Zosimos of Panopolis described soap and soapmaking in c. 300 AD. ... and the article on "Soap" has a lot more to say about the history of soap: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soap#Hi…

But it's not even an essay, isn't it? I found the style in the historic context refreshing, but I wouldn't want to read a history book written this way

Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#142

Post by olibhel »

fastball wrote: post #92
palmetieri2000 wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I learned a lot from your replies to that individual, so thanks for the efforts even if the target recipient doesn't appreciate them.

He mostly seems to be making it up so I wouldn't assume you learned too much.

+1 to this, as an Indian. There's been a recent trend in my country where people, educated or not, have suddenly started finding unnecessary pride in our past - mostly centered around culture and one specific religion - Hinduism.

This pride in the past, is helping our current government win elections in great majority.

But our past, like every other country's past, is riddle with good and bad. While there are many many good things about our culture, there are several things that were wrong and they still are.

For example:

- Women rights

- Caste system

- Servility

- Human suffering, exploitation of poor by the ruling class etc

The usual narrative is - everything wrong with the country is because of people from outside (invaders, colonists etc) and everything right in the country is because of our great Hindu culture.

And most "debates" with such people will end up with them mud slinging on another religion or country.

Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#143

Post by zeristor »

kgeist wrote: post #99

The Old Norse word for Saturday, laugardagr, literally means "washing day". This custom still survives here in countryside Eastern Europe where many people routinely go to sauna (banya) every Saturday (or Sunday like my family). Before the 20th century, a lot of Eastern Europe (especially Russia) still lived like they lived in the middle ages: 95% of the country were serfs on feudal property living in traditional woo…

“Old Believers” interesting in itself:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Believers

Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#145

Post by Osmose »

raarts wrote: post #75

Quoted post unavailable.

You're gonna be disappointed in the rest of the internet and a significant amount of the adults in the world if this language is so foul as to bother you. Completely unnecessary callout.

Either way, a skim of some google results looking for other articles on medieval bathing references evidence in the form of obituaries mentioning deaths of peasants while bathing in rivers, as well as the existence of bathhouses in small towns and recorded prices that were within a peasant's budget. It seems pretty plausible.

Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#146

Post by raarts »

simion314 wrote: post #129
raarts wrote: post #75

Quoted post unavailable.

>Where are all the bath tubs found in excavations? At least here in Easter Europe we were still using wood "bath tubes" until recent times. Wood stuff does not preserve. Also there was no room for "bath", this bath-tubes are portable, so you get the out when you need them then store them away. Sorry for the bad quality of img, this are traditional fromRomania https://adroa.top/ant/?header=Covat%C4%83+de+lemn+foarte+v…

Wood stuff does not preserve? Other furniture does. And even then, they need iron bands to hold them together. Also, rain barrels.

Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#148

Post by tuukkah »

kgeist wrote: post #99

The Old Norse word for Saturday, laugardagr, literally means "washing day". This custom still survives here in countryside Eastern Europe where many people routinely go to sauna (banya) every Saturday (or Sunday like my family). Before the 20th century, a lot of Eastern Europe (especially Russia) still lived like they lived in the middle ages: 95% of the country were serfs on feudal property living in traditional woo…

Most Finns still go to a sauna weekly to supplement the modern daily showers. In Finnish cities, old apartment buildings don't have a sauna room in every apartment (like in the 1980s) or a time-shared sauna suite in every building (like since maybe the 1940s?). Instead, there were big public saunas in every block or so, and people went bathing there once a week.

In Helsinki, only a handful of those old public saunas remain today, but they are now protected by UNESCO and there's been a revival with several fancy public saunas built downtown in the last years, and the wood-heated ones are still considered the best: https://www.myhelsinki.fi/en/see-and-do/activities/the-best-...

Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#149

Post by allendoerfer »

kumarvvr wrote: post #117
kortilla wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Indian norms and culture emphasizes on moving away from materialism and advocates for distribution of wealth. Greed is frowned upon and actively discouraged in a society. Wealthy are encouraged to perform rituals and festivals and distribute their wealth. This is also a bog standard description of Christianity and a bunch of other religions. There isn’t anything special about India here. > India is the only civiliz…

> This is also a bog standard description of Christianity and a bunch of other religions. I never said India is special in this regard. >Bullshit. Just the history of England and France alone are packed full of wealthy and privileged people focusing their life on the pursuit of enlightenment (spiritual, artistic, and/or scientific) and giving up pre-arranged lives of power and wealth. Name 2 kings or monarchs who did…

> Where does it say in Christianity or Islam that this world is an illusion,

Christianity is very obviously all about eternal live in heaven with god. That's the main selling point: Your suffering on earth is not actually the real thing and you do not have to be afraid of death. You do not have to worry. Also something, something, love is good. That is how it gets sold.

> that there is one god, that all paths lead to the same god,

That's the main thing that unites the three abrahamic religions.

> or that the soul inside you is the very same god you pray to ?

Literally in Genesis. And god created men in his own image.

I had to comment on this thread, because what you and others are writing here just seems like some Indian exceptionalism. Seems like you are trying to defend something and overshooting quite a bit.

Above the state of India 1000 years ago got mentioned. As a European I give you this perspective: I feel like I can be a bit more relaxed regarding other nations, because everybody was invading each other all the time, so most certainly I would not exist genetically if my (proto-)nation would have won all these conflicts. I have nothing to do with my nation 1000 years ago. We are all the result of history.

Re: I assure you, medieval people bathed (2019)

#150

Post by monetus »

andrekandre wrote: post #108
bryanrasmussen wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>In ancient times, right until the attacks by Islamist marauders and "civilized" Britishers, none of what you have mentioned were an issue. My assumption, when applied to India, would be that it would be an issue for the untouchables caste? >If you are not aware, this was how most of the world lived. Lower class was the norm. We are now living in an age of disproportionate luxury. Even so it still seems unlikely that…

> My assumption, when applied to India, would be that it would be an issue for the untouchables caste? afaik untouchables as a concept was mostly enacted around (british) colonial rule (when they instituted the caste system we see even to today), so might not apply to the time period they are talking about... (happy to be corrected on this if i misunderstand)

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste_system_in_India

Seems like the British systems formed and formalized it, but that that itself was an amalgam of the cultural stratification that was sometimes already there. Multiculturalism turned monstrous... sad.

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