The insulae were noisy: even after glass windows were invented and replaced shutters, they couldn’t keep out the constant commotion of Roman street life. Before dawn, the bakers were out clanging their ovens. Later in the morning, teachers would be shouting out their lessons in the squares. All day you could hear the constant hammering of the gold beaters, the jangling coins of the money changers, the cries of beggars and of vociferous shopkeepers trying to strike a bargain. At night, dancing, drunken sailors and creaking carts added to the din. But worse than the noise and lack of sanitation
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