Romans Wore Underwear—And Washed It Themselves
Reach under a Roman tunic and you’ll find linen shorts—suddenly, nothing feels so ancient.
baron François Gérard — "Madame Charles Maurice de Talleyrand Périgord (1761–1835)" (ca. 1804), public domain
Under the Tunic: Ancient Roman Undies
Think Romans went commando under all those togas? Not a chance. From Pompeii to Rome, archaeologists have dug up bundles of linen subligacula—drawers, shorts, even loincloths. Some came stamped with the owner's name, proof that laundry mix-ups weren’t just a modern pain.
Wash, Rinse, Repeat: Doing the Dirty Work
Pompeian laundries didn’t just tackle togas. Graffiti and basin stains show they scrubbed underwear and socks by the pile—sometimes right in public fountains. For modest Romans, changing and washing your own drawers was everyday business, not scandalous at all.
In Roman Pompeii, archaeologists found piles of linen subligacula—real underwear—some even monogrammed. Graffiti outside a fullonica (laundry) shows that men and women handed over their sweaty underthings for washing, or sometimes scrubbed them themselves in public fountains.
