Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe

by Laurence Bergreen

Defecating was even more difficult, calling for a precarious balancing act as a sailor eased himself over the rail and lowered himself onto a crude seat suspended high above the waves. There were two such seats, fore and aft, known as jardines, a name ironically suggesting flowers. After he lowered his breeches and eased himself into the seat, the sailor had to void himself in full view of anyone who cared to watch—privacy did not exist aboard these ships—and if the sea happened to be rough, the frigid spray splattered his exposed bottom. (More than one sailor lost his life when he plunged from the jardines to the ocean.) When he was done, he wiped himself with a length of pitch-covered rope, and then climbed back on deck, where he no doubt breathed a sigh of relief.