Water and wastewater management in the treatment process of a Roman fullonica

Water and wastewater management in the treatment
process of a Roman fullonica
G. De Feo, Sabino De Gisi*
* University of Salerno, Department of Industrial Engineering, www.diin.unisa.it
via Ponte don Melillo – 84084 Fisciano (SA), Italy, sdegisi@unisa.it

Introduction
SSuummmmaarryy
The fullonica or fullery in the ancient civilizations
The significant economic aspects of a Roman fullonica
Historical and literature evindece
Remains of fullonicae and the fulling treatment process
Water and wastewater management system in a Roman
fullery
The fullonica of Stephanus in Pompeii as case study
Conclusions
References

As it is well known, the
processes of cleaning clothes
were well-organized in the
ancient world, especially in the
Roman period (Cleland et al.,
2007).
From the economic point of
IInnttrroodduuccttiioonn
SSoocciiaall aanndd eeccoonnoommiicc aassppeeccttss ooff ffuulllleerryy
An anecdote tells that the
Emperor Aurelian refused his
wife a silk dress because its
price was considered too
expansive.
view, the high price of the gowns
and the number of times that
they had to be washed were two
of the most significant aspects
that gave particular importance
to the art of the fullonica.
EEmmppeerroorr AAuurreelliiaann

SSoocciiaall aanndd eeccoonnoommiicc aassppeeccttss ooff ffuulllleerryy
First you have to wash the
clothes with dissolved earth
from Sardinia, then they have
to be smoked with sulphur
and, finally, they have to be
purified with good coloured
cimolia earth.
To wash the clothes and
remove stains, as Pliny
says, absorbent earths
were mixed with the urine
of camels and/or humans
used as soap due to the
alkaline salts contained.
CC.. FFllaammiinniiuuss
For white robes after
treatment with sulphur, it is
more convenient to use the
land called saxum sasso,
which, however, is not
appropriate for coloured
clothes”.
Other literature evidence
has reported in Frontinius
and Seneca according the
use of clear water and the
processing techniques,
respectively.
LL.. AAeemmiilliiuuss

Drawings depicting various phases of the
fulling process and, in particular, a drawing
of the press were found at Pompeii.
The fullers are depicted as jumping into a
metal bowl filled with water. It seems that
small boys were used for this activity.
From the pictorial representations, it can
HHiissttoorriiccaall aanndd lliitteerraattuurree eevviiddeennccee
be deduced that both men and women
worked in the fullonicae.
Probably women were occupied only to mend
the clothes, while men were involved in the
more strenuous activities (Real Museo
Borbonico, 1827; Davenport Adams, 1868).
RReeaall MMuusseeoo BBoorrbboonniiccoo ,, NNaapplleess

Flohr and Wilson (2011) stated that in the last century, the
use of urine for fullers was overstated.
There is no reliable information about the quantities that
were needed in the production process.
In particular, they argued that in order to work with a more
concentrated solution, the usual amount of liquid under the
feet of the fuller was rather limited.
HHiissttoorriiccaall aanndd lleetteerraattuurree eevviiddeennccee
Moreover, there is no evidence about the fact that fullers
collected their urine by means of vessels in front of their
workshops, as usually reported.
Thus, it is not clear how Roman fullers collected and transported
the urine they used.

OObbjjeeccttss ooff tthhee wwoorrkk
TThhee aaiimm ooff tthhiiss wwoorrkk
The aim of this work is to:
identify the remains of Roman fullonicae in Italy;
study the treatment process of a Roman fullery with
particular attention to the water and wastewater
management system as example of water reuse.

Remains of fullonicae and the fulling
ttrreeaattmmeenntt pprroocceessss

RReemmaaiinnss ooff ffuulllloonniiccaaee aatt PPoommppeeiiii
PPoommppeeiiii ((CCaammppaanniiaa RReeggiioonn,, IIttaallyy))
(1) I 4, 7
(2) I 6, 7 (fullonica of Stephanus)
(3) I 10, 6
(4) V 1, 2
(5) VI 3, 6-7 (Accademia della Musica)
(6) VI 8, 20-21.2 (fullonica of Veranius Hypsaeus)
(7) VI 14, 21.22 (fullonica of Vesonius Primus)
(8) VI 15, 3 (fullonica of Mustius)
(9) VI 16, 3.4
(10) VI 16, 6
(11) VII 2, 41
(12) IX 6, a
(13) IX 13, 5-6 (fullonica of Fabius Ululitremulus)

RReemmaaiinnss ooff ffuulllloonniiccaaee aatt OOssttiiaa
OOssttiiaa ((LLaattiiuumm RReeggiioonn,, IIttaallyy))
(1) I xiii, 3
(2) II iv, 5[12]
(3) II xi, 1
(4) II xi, 2
(5) III ii, 2
(6) V viii, 3

Florance (Piazza della Signoria)
Ercolanum (IV, 5-7)
Rome
(1) Casal Bertone
(2) Ospedale militare del Celio
(3) Colle Oppio

TThhee ssccaallee ffaaccttoorr
AA ffuulllliinngg ffaaccttoorryy iinn OOssttiiaa
The almost complete dependence on
manual labour makes Rome a non-industrial
society.
However, certain phenomena only seem
to have parallels in the modern world.
The fulling factories of Ostia and
RRoommee aarree aa kkeeyy eexxaammppllee::
Purpose-built production halls;
Large work groups (up to 100 people)
Rationalisation of the production
process
Separation of working and living
Isolation from street and community
RRoommaa aa ““pprreeiinndduussttrriiaall”” mmeettrrooppoolliiss,,
eexxaammppllee ooff oorrggaanniizzeedd wwoorrkk oonn ggrreeaatt ssccaallee
vveerrssuuss

TThhee ssccaallee ffaaccttoorr
AA ffuulllliinngg ffaaccttoorryy iinn PPoommppeeiiii
The fulling factories of
Pompeii are characterized:
Smaller workshop;
Location in private houses;
Work took place in family
contest;
Craftsmanship basis social
identity
TThhee ffuulllloonniiccaaee ooff PPoommppeeiiii aanndd
EErrccoollaannuumm,
eexxaammppllee ooff ssmmaalllleerr wwoorrkksshhoopp
oorrggaanniizzeedd iinn pprriivvaattee hhoouusseess
wwiitthhoouutt sseeppaarraattiioonn ooff wwoorrkkiinngg
aanndd lliivviinngg rroooommss
Shops integrating workers
into their community.
TThhee OOxxffoorrdd RRoommaann EEccoonnoommyy
PPrroojjeecctt ((OOXXRREEPP))
MMiikkoo FFlloohhrr ((22001111))

Water and wastewater management

Water and wastewater mmaannaaggeemmeenntt
WWaatteerr ssuuppppllyy ssyysstteemm
The water used in the fullery could be taken from the roof of the atrium and/or the
urban water supply system.
Since the Pompeian follonicae were derived from private houses, they often
presented extemporaneous solutions for the water supply and even for the wastewater
discharge system, because in the construction of workshops, people made the most of
whatever material was available (Flohr, 2008b).
FFiirrsstt mmooddee:: tthhee
rrooooff ooff tthhee aattrriiuumm
SSeeccoonndd mmooddee:: tthhee uurrbbaann wwaatteerr ssuuppppllyy ssyysstteemm

WWaatteerr aanndd wwaasstteewwaatteerr mmaannaaggeemmeenntt
The floor and walls of the basin of the
rinsing complex were usually lined
with waterproof plaster, with all the
corners being strengthened with rims.
The basins were fed with lead or
terracotta pipes (Flohr, 2008b).
All the water from the various part of the
workshop could be collected,
transported (usually underneath the
pavement) and discharged in the street
separately or in one drain.
In order not to completely invade the
street, the wastewater usually
approached the street with an angle of
around 45°(Flohr, 2008b).
4455°

B3
Usually, water went in one direction
from the first basin (B3) to the last
basin where there is the discharge.
Clothes follow the opposite
direction and thus gradually
become cleaner. Water in B2 is
reused in the basin B1
DDiirreeccttiioonn ooff ccllootthhss
DDiirreeccttiioonn ooff ddiirrttyy
wwaatteerr
B1
B2

The fullonica of Stephanus in Pompeii

TThhee ffuulllloonniiccaa ooff SStteepphhaannuuss iinn PPoommppeeiiii
GGeeooggrraapphhiiccaall ffrraammeewwoorrkk
The common academic perception of the Roman fullonicae is significantly
influenced by the fullonica of Stephanus (I 6, 7) in Pompeii presented in literatura
as the “classic” Roman fullonica (Flohr, 2008a);
The fullonica I 6, 7 is attributed to Stephanus, whose name appears in one of the
electoral inscriptions painted on the facade of the building;
It was excavated in July 1912 as described in Spinazzola (1953).
((II 66,, 77)) FFuulllleerryy ooff SStteepphhaannuuss

TThhee ffuulllloonniiccaa ooff SStteepphhaannuuss
TThhee aattrriiuumm
TThhee wwoorrkksshhoopp zzoonnee
AAbbbboonnddaannzzaa’’ss ssttrreeeett

The fullonica I 6, 7 is an house with a shop at the street (Via
dell’Abbondanza) and a workshop in the garden.

The flat roof and skylight

Drawings

Drawings and view on peristyle

There is no evidence that the basin B4 was used in the production process. In
fact, objects found in the atrium suggest that it was only a domestic ornamental basin,
with a fountain.

Versus the peristyle

The workshop zone

BBaassiinn B3
The complex of 3 basins
BBaassiinn B2
BBaassiinn B1

TThhee ffuulllliinngg ttrreeaattmmeenntt pprroocceessss

11)) TThhee ssooaappiinngg pphhaassee
In the soaping, the clothes were treated in small tubs called fulling stalls. The
single fulling stall can be seen as a batch reactor with the inlet clothes, the
urine and/or other alkaline substances (creta fullonica, terra umbrica, etc) as
chemical agents and the Roman fuller to provide the required mechanical
energy. With the application of the chemical agents, there is the elimination of
greases, fats and other pollutant agents.

The fulling stalls are located on two sides of the
rinsing complex: three (S1-S3) on the east side
and two (S4-S5) on the west side.
S1
S2
S3

S5 S4
BBaassiinn B3
The fulling stalls are located on two sides of the
rinsing complex: three (S1-S3) on the east side
and two (S4-S5) on the west side.
IInnlleett ffrreesshh wwaatteerr

22)) TThhee rriinnssiinngg pphhaassee
The rinsing phase had the aim of removing residues of chemical agents as well as
dirt residues. This task was performed by the rinsing basins in the following order: B3
(containing the most dirty water: reused twice), B2 (containing the medium dirty water:
reused once) and B1 (containing fresh water coming from the urban water supply
system).

BBaassiinn B3

BBaassiinn B1
BBaassiinn B2
BBaassiinn B3 TThhee rroouuttee ooff ddiirrttyy wwaatteerr

TThhee rroouuttee ooff ddiirrttyy wwaatteerr

33)) TThhee ffiinniisshhiinngg pphhaassee
The last phase of the fulling treatment process (finishing) consisted of several
treatments depending above all on the demands of the customers. Probably, the
treatment processes were: typing, carding, treatment with sulphur, screw press
and drying. The treatment with sulphur was carried out for the most delicate clothes
(white in colour) and those intended for dyeing.
RReeaall MMuusseeoo BBoorrbboonniiccoo ,,
NNaapplleess
In the figure, a workman carrying a cage. The
clothes were hung on it. Below, the sulfur
was lit in order to whiten clothes. The owl is
the symbol above the cage of the fullers.

TThhee ppllaanntt ooff tthhee wwaatteerr aanndd wwaasstteewwaatteerr mmaannaaggeemmeenntt ssyysstteemm
The probable zone of the discharge
The complex of the 3 basins

IInnlleett ffrreesshh wwaatteerr
TThhee rroouuttee ooff ddiirrttyy wwaatteerr ttoo
ddiisscchhaarrggee

LLeeaadd ppiippee ooff tthhee iinnlleett ffrreesshh wwaatteerr

DDiiaammeetteerr == 44 ccmm

Probable route of the water
to discharge

TTeerrrraaccoottttaa ppiippee

CCoonncclluussiioonnss
The following outcomes based on the performed study can be stated:
CCoonncclluussiioonnss
in a fullonica there is a precise spatial organization with a sharp division in a
“wet” area (with the fulling facilities) and a “dry” area with particular care of
wastewater management;
the use of urine as an alkaline chemical agent in the Roman fullonicae was
overstated;
the fact that fullers collected their urine by means of vessels in front of their
workshops has to be considered as scholarly fiction since there is no written or
material evidence;
it is not clear how the Roman fullers collected and transported the urine;
the rinsing phase can be considered as a clear example of water reuse performed
in antiquity.
The common academic perception of Roman fullonicae is significantly influenced
by the fullonica of Stephanus (I 6, 7) in Pompeii, example of “classic” Roman
fullonica.

Cleland L., Davies G., Lloyd L.J. (2007), Greek and Roman dress from A to Z, Routledge, New York, USA.
Davenport Adams W.H. (1868), The buried cities of Campania; or, Pompeii and Herculaneum, their history, their
destruction, and their remains, Edinburgh and New York.
Flohr M. (2008a), Cleaning the Laundries, Rivista di Studi Pompeiani 18.
Flohr M. (2008b), Cleaning the Laundries II. Report of the 2007 campaign, FastiOnlineDocumentsResearch -
FOLDR 2008, 111.
Flohr M. (2009), Pompeii, I 6, 7 ('fullonica of Stephanus'), available on-line at http://www.mikoflohr.nl/archaeology.
Flohr M. (2011a), Cleaning the Laundries III. Report of the 2008 campaign, FastiOnlineDocumentsResearch -
FOLDR 2011, 214.
RReeffeerreenncceess
RReeffeerreenncceess
Flohr M. (2011b), Exploring the limits of skilled craftsmanship. The fullonicae of Roman Italy, in: N. Monteix and
N. Tran (eds), Les savoirs professionels des hommes de metier, Rome: Ecole Française de Rome.gens de
metier: etudes sur le monde du travail dans les societies urbaines de l’empire romain, Centre Jean Bèrard,
Naples, ISBN 978-2-918887-09-6.
Flohr M. and A. Wilson (2011), The economy of Ordure, in: Jansen G.C.M., Koloski-Ostrow A.O., Moormann
E.M., Roman Toilets, 2011, VIII-224 p., Peeters Publishers, Leuven, Belgium.
Real Museo Borbonico (1827), Volume quarto, Napoli, dalla stamperia reale (Fourth volume, Naples, from the
printing real), Naples, Italy.
Spinazzola V. (1953), Pompei alla luce degli Scavi Nuovi di via dell’Abbondanza (Pompeii in the light of the New
Excavations of via dell’Abbondanza), Rome, Italy.

SSaabbiinnoo DDEE GGIISSII
PPhh..DD..,, EEnnvviirroonnmmeennttaall eennggiinneeeerr
DDeeppaarrttmmeenntt ooff IInndduussttrriiaall EEnnggiinneeeerriinngg,, UUnniivveerrssiittyy ooff SSaalleerrnnoo,, IITTAALLYY
wwwwww..ddiiiinn..uunniissaa..iitt//tt - ssddeeggiissii@@uunniissaa..iitt

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Water and wastewater management in the treatment process of a Roman fullonica