![]() ![]() Some people in Germany liked the story of the origins of the phrase so much that they even made a family board game of the same name. This is probably the most famous phrase ever spoken by Vespasian, and is still in use today most commonly to downplay the questionable, or outright illegal, sources of financial gain. The meaning behind this act, of course, was to show that money is not tainted regardless of its origins. Roman historians Dio Cassius and Suetonius wrote about Vespasian’s unpopular tax in their history books saying that when Titus complained about it, his father reportedly picked up a gold coin and remarked, "Pecunia non olet", or, "Money does not stink”. The Urine Tax was considered a disgusting policy by Vespasian's son, and future emperor, Titus. Soon after this urine tax was imposed, Roman wits started calling the local toilets “vespasians". The first public toilets in history were even introduced by Vespasian in 74 AD.Įtching showing the Cloaca Maxima (1757), Giovanni Battista Piranesi ( Wikimedia Commons ) Pecunia non olet: Money Does Not Stink #Pecunia non olet meaning seriesHe began levying a series of taxes to raise funds, one of which was a charge for the collection of urine from public urinals in Rome's Cloaca Maxima (great sewer) system. Known for his love of money and ruthless taxation (which eventually brought the Roman empire out of debt, leaving a surplus in the treasury for the following emperor), Vespasian began the task of repairing and restoring the empire. On top of that, the empire had not a single silver coin in its treasury. When Vespasian became Emperor, the Roman Empire had just emerged from a civil war that almost brought about a complete collapse of their world.
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