Can we take a moment to stop and appreciate one of the most important inventions ever? No, not your phone, the Internet, or HotPockets. The toilet! The biggest question has to be: Why are they always white? Wouldn’t that encourage stains? Why can’t they be black or some other dark color that would hide any graffiti more discreetly?

Well, actually, commodes haven’t always been white…or porcelain! Go back to the Middle Ages. In Europe, commoners had to use chamber pots — yes, for both numbers! But other parts of the world had the sanitary toilet thing down way earlier. The first-ever recorded flushing water closet belonged to King Minos of Crete over 2,800 years ago!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices