HISTORY OF HYGIENE PRODUCTS

They say cleanliness is close to godliness, and for ancient civilisations it was so important that they developed these solutions to life's problems.

RAZORS (60,000 BCE)

An abundance of body hair presented a multitude of problems for Neanderthals: it was riddled with lice, could freeze when it was wet and got rather messy after a meal. Clam shells and flint sufficed as the Gillette razors of the Stone Age, somewhat successfully removing unwanted hair for our earliest ancestors, but more practical solutions came when the Ancient Egyptians began crafting edged razors from copper and gold. By around 300 BCE, implements more closely resembling knuckledusters, called iron novacilas, were shaving the faces of all the trendiest young men in Rome. Some 2.000 years later, incredibly sharp folding blades ominously known as 'cut-throat' razors began to emerge as the shaving implement of choice, only to be eclipsed by King Camp Gillette's less deadly safety razor in 1904.

SANITARY TOWELS (10th CENTURY BCE)

One of the earliest mentions of menstrual management is from the 10th century BCE, when Hypatia - one of the first female Greek mathematicians - is said to have tossed her sanitary rag at a persistent admirer. But by World War I, the demand for bandages on the frontline left cotton in short supply. A substitute from the US - Cellucotton - was introduced, and Red Cross nurses noted how absorbent this wood pulp wadding really was. It was cheap to mass-produce, and after the war, the same company started to market Kotex sanitary pads in 1920.


TOOTHPASTE (5000 BCE)

In 5000 BCE, Babylonians and Egyptians would scrub their smile with the ashes of ox hooves, egg shells and pumice, and the taste of this toothpaste wouldn't improve for some time. In Greece and Rome, they preferred a little more abrasion, adding crushed bones and oyster shells. In 500 BCE, the Chinese added flavouring, with Ginseng and herbal mints. These tooth powders eventually became a paste in the 1800s. However, tooth whitening and decay prevention are relatively recent advancements, only coming into play in 1914.

STRIGILS (5th CENTURY BCE)

This torturous looking implement was used in Ancient Greece to scrape away the sweat and dirt of the day. They were a particular favourite of athletes, who would slather their bodies in oil before competing to protect their skin from the grit of the sports ground, and then use a strigil afterwards to cleanse themselves. Strigils were so important to the daily regime that people were buried with them along with a bottle of oil The Romans carried on the tradition and brought them along to the baths, usually getting a servant to do the honours.

COMBS (5000 BCE)

It's believed we have our ape ancestors to thank for head lice, meaning humans have been battling these bloodsuckers for hundreds of thousands of years. One of the earliest uses of combs seems to have been for this very purpose, dating back to Neolithic times. Lice combs have even been found buried in Egyptian tombs. Spartans, meanwhile, combed their hair as part of a pre-battle ritual, showing that having killer looks has always been important. With ceremonial and practical purposes, the history of combs is a long and tangled one that dates back to among the earliest tools.

TOOTHBRUSHES (3500-3000 BCE)

While the first toothbrush is likely to have been the human finger, resourceful Babylonians and Egyptians would use a 'chewing stick' to scrape away that fuzzy feeling. The ancient Chinese took this invention one step further by sharpening one end to use as a pick, and by the 15th century, they began using bristles from pigs inserted into tiny holes in bone or bamboo.

When this design spread to Europe, it was adapted to include horsehairs, as they were softer, and toothpicks were fashioned from feathers. William Addis gets the credit for the modern toothbrush design in 1780, and nylon bristles were introduced when DuPont invented the synthetic material. They eventually went electric in 1939, and have caused a buzz ever since.

SOAP (2800 BCE)

The first known attempt at a soap recipe comes from the Ancient Babylonians, who combined animal fats, oils and wood ash to form a detergent for their tools and possibly their clothes. The Egyptians, Greeks and Romans all developed their own cocktails of oils, salts and fats, but rather than being part of everyday skincare routines, these were mainly used medicinally. One of the foundations for modern cleanser was Aleppo Soap from the Syrian city, which was traded along the Silk Road. As it spread through Asia, the Middle East and Persia, the Europeans took notice and the Spanish Kingdom of Castile made their own version in the 12th century, which is still available today. With the expansion of Aleppo, Castile Soap followed.

TOILET PAPER (50 BCE)

We've come a long way since the communal sponge-on-a-stick of Ancient Rome. In 50 BCE, the Chinese invented paper, and an emperor from the Song Dynasty is said to have been the first to use it ordering 60 by 90-centimetre sheets to be made for his toilet time. Everyone else in the world used whatever they could get their hands on, and it might have resembled the magazine you're holding right now. Editions of Farmers' Almanac in 1818 were even made with a hole so people could hang it in their outhouses. In fact, toilets existed long before toilet paper, which didn't start circulating until 1857.

SHOWER (1767)

Ancient tribes would wash away the sweat and gore of a hunt with the kind of power shower we can only dream of - a waterfall - and eventually, humans tried to mimic this at home. Egyptian servants poured jugs over their masters, but the ' Greeks went one better and i|l pumped water into communal , shower rooms via aqueducts. The Romans continued this public bathing tradition - ordering slaves to guard their togas from thieves - and centuries later, in 1767 the first mechanical shower meant we could finally wash in privacy.

DEODORANT (1888)

Body odour has existed since time began. Sadly, deodorant has not. Before its day, sweat had to be masked with aromatic plants and oils, and the Ancient Egyptians were renowned for their perfumes. Their influence over Ancient Roman and Greek civilisations caused the scents to spread, but it wasn't until the 19th century that deodorant arrived. It was a paste called Mum, soon followed by the first antiperspirant, Everdry, which happened to sting and destroy clothes. By the mid-1950s, roll-ons were released, inspired by the ballpoint pen, and a decade later, the debut aerosol from Right Guard was launched.

Published in "All About History", UK, issue 41, July 2016, excerpts pp. 50-52. Digitized, adapted and illustrated to be posted by Leopoldo Costa.