History of Bathtubs

History

• Trace bathtub history back to the Romans, who had large public baths. Bathing for the Romans was a social event as well as an act of cleanliness. Bathing before this time was more a way to wash bad things from the soul than dirt from the body. Advancements in medicine allowed for a connection between germs and cleanliness. During this time, bathing became more of a private affair.

Significance

• Religious rites, at one time, were the reason for bathing over cleanliness. Eventually, people realized that the cleaner they kept themselves, the healthier they were. This did not lead to bathtubs in every home such as we see now until the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Bathtubs are still not that common around the world. This may signify wealth, since it costs to have a separate room for bathing, indoor plumbing and access to water.

Function

• The function of bathtubs has changed over the years. Romans used the public bathtubs, much like shallow swimming pools, daily as a way to socialize and meet with people. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, bathtubs became private and were often located in the kitchen of the home. It was not until the twentieth century, when showers became more common than baths, that using bathtubs to relax as well as clean became popular.

Types

• There are many different types of bathtubs available now, such as a claw foot tub, tub and shower combination and corner tubs. All of these are bathtubs in which most people can lie down or recline in. Previous bathtubs, and some modern ones, were either much larger, like the Roman baths, or much smaller. Sitting was the only option for the bather in smaller baths. These bathtubs are generally deeper and shorter than the bathtubs we have in our homes.

Misconceptions

• In the early twentieth century, a man named H.L. Mencken wrote a humorous piece for his newspaper on the history of bathtubs. He gave false facts about the invention of the bathtub and described previous laws making it illegal to bathe. Many believed his article, and even though he stated many times that the article was false, using it as a reliable source was common up until the 1950s.