Yucky Garbage

If you think garbage disposal is a problem today, think again. During the Middle Ages, city populations grew quickly, and so did waste problems. There were few laws governing waste disposal, so people dumped garbage and animal carcasses in the rivers. When butchers killed animals, they let the blood run in the gutters of the streets, where it mixed with dyes dumped from rats and other wastes. There was no refrigeration in those days, so when fish sellers had fish left at the end of the day, they tossed them into the streets to rot. People often wore tall-soled clogs to stay above the muck. Pigs were allowed to roam free to eat from the street, except on Sundays, when loose pigs were illegal.