Sponge is a tool or cleaning aid made of soft porous material. Sponges are often used to clean impermeable surfaces, especially to absorb water and aqueous solutions.

The earliest references to sponges for sanitation can be traced back to ancient Greece. Before the competition, the Olympic contestants take a sponge sponge with olive oil or perfume. In the Greek poet Homer's Odyssey, the God Hephaestus washed his hands, face and chest with a sea sponge, and the servants of Odysseus palace washed the table with a sea sponge after the suitors in Penelope ate there. The Greek philosophers Aristotle and Plato also mentioned the sea sponge in their works under the background of science and history. The ancient Greeks also used sea sponges tied to sticks as toilet paper and washed it with sea water.

Ancient Romans also widely used sea sponges for sanitation and other purposes. The belief that sponges have therapeutic properties has led them to be used in medicine to clean wounds and treat diseases.

Throughout history, sea sponges have been used by women as tampons and are still used as cheaper and more environmentally friendly alternatives to fiber sponges. However, the researchers do not recommend the use of sponge as tampons because they may contain dirt and microorganisms, especially if disinfection is not good.

In the New Testament, a Roman soldier provides Jesus Christ with a sponge dipped in vinegar and a spear dipped in vinegar (some say "stick") for Jesus to drink when he is crucified, which is a mockery.

It is only after the invention of polyester fiber in 1941 and commercial production of polyurethane foam in 1952 that synthetic sponge can be produced.

Synthetic sponges can be made of polyester, polyurethane or plant cellulose. Polyurethane is abrasive in polyester sponge. Polyester sponge is more common when washing dishes, usually soft and yellow.

Cellulose sponge made of wood fiber is more often used for bathing and skin cleaning, and is usually stronger and more expensive than polyester sponge. They are considered more environmentally friendly than polyester sponges because they are biodegradable and made from natural materials