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The Fullers and Laundries of Pompeii

Explore the fascinating world of fullers and laundries in ancient Pompeii. Discover the three-stage process of fulling, the use of urine in cleaning, and the legal regulations that governed this respected profession.

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The Fullers and Laundries of Pompeii

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  1. The Fullers and Laundries of Pompeii www.misterconnor.org

  2. Fullers • Lat. Fullo A cloth-launderer. • A fullo worked in a fullery or fullonica. • There is some evidence that fullones dealt with cloth straight from the loom. • Workshops of fulloneshave been found in several Roman cities. • The most important examples are in Ostia and Pompeii.

  3. The Process • Fulling required three stages: • 1. Soaping • 2. Rinsing • 3. Finishing

  4. Soaping • Clothes were treated in small tubs. • The fuller stood with his feet in the tub filled with water and a mixture of alkaline chemicals (often the urine of people and/or animals) and trampled the cloth, scrubbed it, and wrung it out. • Urine was a rich source of ammonia. More on this shortly. • The aim of this treatment was to apply the chemicals to the cloth so that they could remove greases and fats.

  5. Soaping [2] • The painting opposite comes from the wall of a fullonica at Pompeii. • The installations in which this treatment was done are usually referred to as 'treading stalls’ or 'fulling stalls’. • They are typical for fulling workshops and are often used by archaeologist to identify fullonicae in the archaeological remains.

  6. Taking the Piss • Many urban centres placed large vessels at the corners of streets where they could be filled with pots from households and other local businesses. • The historian Suetonius wrote that Vespasian imposed a urinaevectigal a tax paid on Roman fullers for the urine they collected from the city’s great sewer system.

  7. Rinsing • After the clothes were soaped in the “chemicals”, the dirt that they had resolved had to be washed out. • This happened with fresh water in a complex of large basins that often were connected to the town’s water supply. • The typical rinsing complex consisted of three or four basins that were connected to each other: the fresh water entered on one side of the complex, the dirty water left it on the other side. • Clothes followed the opposite direction of the water and went from the basin with the dirtiest water to the basin with the cleanest water.

  8. FiniShing • The last phase of the process consisted of a variety of treatments. The precise sequence is not exactly known and may have varied, depending on the nature of the workshop and the demands of customers. • The cloth was often brushed, with the thistle of plants, and sheared, as is indicated from finds in some Pompeian fullonicae.

  9. Finishing [2] • Sometimes, clothes were also treated with sulfur. The cloth was then hung on a basket woven structure called a viminea cavea. • Fullonesadded sulfur to white cloths to maintain the color, knowing that sulfur was volatile enough to destroy colors. • The clothes were also pressed in a screw press. • Remains of such presses have been found at Pompeii and Herculaneum.

  10. The Law • According to Pliny the Elder, the work of fullones was taken very seriously. • The proper method for fullones to practice was written into Roman law. • The law stressed the use of Cimolian earth to brighten and freshen colors that have faded due to sulfur. • On the other hand, the law stated that the mineral saxum was useful for white clothing but harmful to colors.

  11. The Law [2] • Fullones had a legal responsibility of the clothes they were washing. • Fullones were subject to penalties if they returned the wrong clothes or damaged them. • The profession of a fullo was highly reputable, and some formed their own guilds.

  12. Religion and Laundry • Roman launderers worshipped the goddess Minerva, as did many other professions. • Therefore, the fullones were particularly involved with Quinquatrus, Minerva’s main feast held on March 19. • The feast often took place in a fullo'sworkshops. • Fullonesare associated with representations of owls, such as in Roman graffiti found in Pompeii.

  13. The SKinny • A smelly but necessary job. • Surprisingly respected. • Use of urine as an ammonia. • Important enough to be regulated by law. • Closely associated with Minerva.

  14. Sources • http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/SMIGRA*/Fullo.html • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fullo

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