Hygiene

One of the main sections of the interactive room at the Magna Carta Exhibit is about Hygiene. It is often one of the most popular parts of the entire exhibit because people were not aware of the practices exercised in the 13th century. The medieval plumbing system consisted mainly of rivers and moats. In fact, lined along the river Thames in London, there were the public restrooms, which would empty there reservoirs of filth into the river when the tide rose. The toilets in castles would simply let the excrement slide down the wall into the moat. Urine, however, was collected feverishly, since urine is high in ammonia, a very practical chemical. It could be used to clean hides, cure diseases, and often wash mouths.
The bathing rituals would often involve stick toothbrushes and rancid smelling soap made from animal trimmings. Nobility would partake in the exact same practices, but their soap would sometimes be infused with lavender or other fragrances. Essentially all those who lived in England were covered in animal fat, but the nobility would be slathered in both animal fat and herbs.

Training to be a Docent

Four students at POHS were approached directly by Dr. Quillin to become docents for the Magna Carta exhibit. We were wary at first, but when we knew we would be touring people through the exhibit in pairs, we agreed. When we went to the HMNS the first time to train, we were unsure of what was required of us to become a docent because none of us had ever done anything like it. The training sessions quickly cleared it up for us.

We as docents had a lot of responsibility, no adult supervision for us. Two students would be put together to take a group of students or otherwise that they would have to talk to themselves to organize the tour. To teenagers, this is a rather daunting task. But so far we have managed to do it pretty well.

Learning about the Magna Carta and the time of it was very interesting and fun. We loved to give people we toured the information that wasn't on the panels in the exhibit that they never would have known without us. It gives us a feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction that we don't really get from much else.