The earliest known use of toilet paper dates back to the 6th century in China, where paper was used for hygiene purposes. Large-scale manufacturing of toilet paper began in the 14th century in the Zhejiang province of China.Other ancient civilizations had their own methods for personal cleanliness:
- In Rome, public toilets were common and people used a tersorium - a natural sea sponge tied to a stick - for cleaning. The sponges were stored in pots of sea brine or vinegar between uses.
- Ancient Greeks used stones, clay pieces, and a device called a xylospungium - a wooden stick with a sea sponge at the end.
- In Japan, flat pieces of wood similar to tongue depressors were used.
It took a long time for toilet paper to spread from China to the Western world. In Europe, people commonly used rags, while in the Americas, corn cobs were popular for a very long time, even after the invention of toilet paper.
The First Commercial Toilet Paper
The first commercially available toilet paper was created by American entrepreneur Joseph Gayetty in 1857. He sold "Gayetty's Medicated Paper" in flat sheets infused with aloe, marketed as a treatment for hemorrhoids. However, it never became widely popular.In 1867, brothers Seth Wheeler and Clarence Scott began selling toilet paper in Philadelphia. In 1879, the Scott brothers founded the Scott Paper Company and introduced the world's first toilet paper on rolls. This was a significant innovation over the previous flat sheets.
Toilet Paper Advancements
Over the next few decades, toilet paper continued to evolve:
- In 1871, Seth Wheeler patented rolled and perforated toilet paper.
- In 1880, the British Perforated Paper Company began selling toilet paper in boxes of individual squares.
- In 1935, Northern Tissue introduced splinter-free toilet paper.
- In 1942, St. Andrews Paper Mill in England began selling the first two-ply toilet paper, which became the standard in many countries.
Today, toilet paper is a ubiquitous household item with many varieties available, from basic single-ply to soft, quilted, and scented options. While we take it for granted now, toilet paper has come a long way from its humble beginnings in ancient China.
