and then there was soap...

[RocknRoll]

I found this interesting and thought I would share

Legend of Soap

According to Roman legend, soap was created by accident not far from Rome, on Mount Sapo. A temple sat atop Mount Sapo and was used for burning animal sacrifices as offerings to God. The river Tiber flowed below Mount Sapo and was favored by women as a place to wash clothes. The women discovered that after a rainstorm their clothes were softer and easier to clean. It did not take them long to find a white substance stuck to the rocks on the hill that the rainwater had flowed down to meet the river. The wood ashes from the sacrificial altar, combined with the rainwater and animal fat, had saponified and flowed down the hill to the river. In short soap was made, considered to be a gift from God. The word “saponify” comes from Mount Sapo.
Interesting fact: When the ruins of Pompeii were uncovered, a soap factory was found, still stocked with bars of soap.

 

[terminatortoo]

Makes perfect sense to me.

 

[melstan775]

Awesome. Thanks for sharing!

 

[sistrum]

I've read that a famous roman historian (Pliny the elder) states that Romans learned soap making from the Gauls, they used goat fat and birch ashes.

 

[danahuff]

It is a cool story, and it is oft repeated, but it is, unfortunately, not true. No such place as Mount Sapo, and sacrifices wouldn't have had enough fats to make soap as the sacrifices were usually just bones and entrails. I have been conducting quite a bit of research about the history of soap, and it's rather fascinating. Pliny the Elder DID document its use among the Gauls, but they used it to color their hair rather than for washing.

A form of soap was used for washing fabrics as far back as the 500's BCE. Archaeologists have found an ancient recipe for a soap-like substance. The ancient Egyptians used natron.

The physican Galen described a soap recipe with the fat of goats and oxen mixed with lye. It seems a lot of the ancients mainly admired soap for its medicinal qualities, and it isn't surprising that the Arabs in particular used soap medicinally. The Aleppo soap originated in Syria and was exported throughout the Mediterranean.

By the 6th century CE, a soapmaker's guild existed in Naples.

Sapo is, however, the Latin name for soap, and "saponify" does originate from that word.

I don't know where the legend of Mount Sapo originated, but you see that story referenced in a lot of books. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about Mount Sapo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Sapo.

 

[Ruthie]

I do not know about the other early peoples, but the Israelites were commanded to sacrifice (burn) the fat of the animals. (Exodus 29:13 among a miriad of other verses) So even if in other places the sacrifices did not include the fat, there they did.

 

[nebetmiw]

Then we have the herb Soapwort or Bouncing Bet (Saponaria Officinalis F.)

An herb used for cleaning for a thousand year and brought to the USA from England. It produces a nice lather and is also known as Latherwort. It was used to clean everything from lace to pewter vessels.

 

[Ruthie]

Then we have the herb Soapwort or Bouncing Bet (Saponaria Officinalis F.)

An herb used for cleaning for a thousand year and brought to the USA from England. It produces a nice lather and is also known as Latherwort. It was used to clean everything from lace to pewter vessels.

So glad you mentioned that!! Need to try some in the liquid in my soap and see whether it adds bubbles.