Notes d'archéologie et d'architecture orientales

Abstract

Jean-Claude MARGUERON 2 «… Nous apprenons à séparer et non pas à voir ce qui relie. Pour résoudre un problème selon Descartes, il faut séparer en autant de petites parties qu'on le peut et les résoudre les unes après les autres. Mais ce n'est valable que quand il y a addition de problèmes. Dès qu'il y a un tout, on ne peut le comprendre en additionnant ce qu'on sait des parties séparées. De par son organisation et son fonctionnement, un tout est plus que la somme de ses parties. Ainsi, notre mode de pensée formé dès le primaire, consolidé dans le secondaire et aggravé irrémédiablement à l'Université, nous amène à être lucides pour séparer, mais myopes pour relier… » 3 Edgar MORIN Résumé-Le principal objectif de cette NAAO est de mettre en évidence que l'application stricte des règles de la stratigraphie archéologique 4 , sans induire d'erreurs évidentes au premier degré, peut modifier la réalité ancienne au point de donner naissance à une situation qui n'a jamais existé 5. L'analyse s'appuie sur un réexamen de la stratigraphie de Khafajé.

Evolution of Toilets Worldwide through the Millennia

“…A sketch of these parallel canalizations of a several story house in Ugarit is shown in Figure 3b. Recently, Margueron [16,18] has questioned the idea held for over a century by many archeologists regarding the existence of large sewage collectors in ancient Mesopotamian cities. Margueron argues that transport of solid waste requires conduit slopes and water discharges larger than those usually available in Mesopotamia, and that the net of water conduits uncovered in Mesopotamian cities were built exclusively to manage rainwater.…”

“…Wastes are discharged to the cesspit which is usually located under the evacuation orifice. When the pit is not located directly under the toilet, the orifice is connected to the cesspit by means of a short pipe with a steep slope [18]. Two kinds of toilets have been described in ancient Mesopotamia: toilette à la turque, i.e., a squat toilet, in which the person adopts a squat position, and the seat type toilet.…”

“…Wastes are discharged to the cesspit which is usually located under the evacuation orifice. When the pit is not located directly under the toilet, the orifice is connected to the cesspit by means of a short pipe with a steep slope [18]. Seat type toilets have been found, for example, in Mari, Eshnunna (Tell Asmar), Girsu (current Tello in southern Iraq), Kish (southern Iraq), Nuzi (near modern Kirkun, in north-eastern Iraq), etc.…”

“…From a survey made by Margueron [18], it was found that the heights of the toilets reported as seat type in the literature are in the range of 0.2 to 0.6 m, with 0.5 m the value for about the 50% of the facilities. Recently, Margueron [16,18] has questioned the commonly accepted view that facilities like that of Figure 7 correspond to toilets. When this type of toilet is not directly over the cesspit, the conduit carrying the waste has a relatively low slope, which is not enough to transport solid wastes.…”

“…The slot connects to the opening of a bell shaped clay pipe (with a mouth of 12 cm in diameter), and the junction was smoothly calked with bitumen. From a survey made by Margueron [18], it was found that the heights of the toilets reported as seat type in the literature are in the range of 0.2 to 0.6 m, with 0.5 m the value for about the 50% of the facilities. Recently, Margueron [16,18] has questioned the commonly accepted view that facilities like that of Figure 7 correspond to toilets.…”