I've been doing some research in the last couple of weeks about the astronomer Thales of Miletus for an upcoming episode of a podcast I host about the history o

I've been doing some research in the last couple of weeks about the astronomer Thales of Miletus for an upcoming episode of a podcast I host about the history of astronomy that I run [0]. I had known that Thales was one of the Seven Sages of Greece, but I didn't quite appreciate the extent to which the Seven Sages had entered the popular consciousness. It turns out that centuries later over in Rome there was a public latrine in the town of Ostia Antica that has some graffiti that reference a few of the sages, including Thales, and provide advice for those using the facilities: * “To shit well, Solon rubbed his belly {Ut bene cacaret, ventrum palpavit Solon}.” * “Thales admonished those shitting to strain hard {Durum cacantes monuit ut nitant Thales}.” * “Sly Chilon taught to fart silently {Vissire tacite Chilon docuit subdolus}.” Below these there are some other pieces of advice, though not from the sages: * “shake yourself about so you’ll go faster {agita te celerivs pervenies}” * “you’re sitting on a mule-driver; I’m hurrying up {mvlione sedes, propero}” * “friend, the proverb escapes you: shit well and fuck the doctors {amice fvgit te proverbivm: bene caca et irrima medicos}” * “no one talks to you much, Priscianus, until you use the sponge on a stick {verbose tibi nemo dicit dvm priscianvs utaris xylosphongio}” An interesting article with more details: https://www.purplemotes.net/2014/01/19/seven-sages-ostia/ https://www.purplemotes.net/2014/01/19/seven-sages-ostia/ [0]: Shameless plug: https://songofurania.com/ https://songofurania.com/