How Did Ancient People Wash Clothes

Modern humans have been around for over 200000 years, and in modern research, the timing of human clothing remains uncertain. Among them, Kaishen's team monitored the mitochondrial and nuclear DNA of head lice and body lice, and came to a relatively reliable conclusion that humans have been wearing clothes for over 190000 years.

The earliest records of laundry can be traced back to a tomb in Beni Hasan, Egypt 4000 years ago. The murals in the tomb depict two slaves washing clothes, one pouring water on the clothes and the other kneading and flowing water into the next trough. Today, many places still use this simple and primitive laundry method.

                                                                                         ancient egyptian mural

2400 years ago, the Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period in China

During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods in China, washing clothes was known as "pounding clothes". There was a saying that "imitating the beauty of a woman from Dongcun and washing clothes by the white stream", which is the most common way of washing clothes by the river.

                                                           Xishi Washing Cloth Diagram

There is a beautiful story about washing clothes. The beautiful woman Xishi was washing clothes by the stream, making the fish forget to swim and sink.

1.3 Tang Dynasty 1300 years ago

The washboard and wooden stick are the main tools for washing clothes. Women living by the water often use a wooden stick to pound their clothes, while women living far away from the water invented the washboard. The description of "smashing clothes" is widely used in the poetry of literati and literati, such as Li Bai's "Chang'an is full of moon, and the sound of thousands of households smashing clothes".

                                Tang Dynasty's Smashing Clothes Diagram