The Humble Toilet

The humble toilet; it’s an essential part of our daily lives but not very exciting to talk about. However, it does have an interesting history which dates back to ancient times. Click here if you’re interested in learning more.

The idea for this post started several years ago in a hotel restroom in Bergen, Norway. I stopped in my tracks when I saw this and decided it might be fun to blog about. Since then, I have been collecting photos of interesting and amusing toilet facilities, and a few friends and family members have added to the collection.

But first, a few fun facts. English plumber and businessman, Thomas Crapper, is often mistakenly given credit for inventing the flush toilet.

However, the flush toilet was invented in 1596 by Sir John Harington, godson of Queen Elizabeth I. Crapper’s contribution consisted of the modernization of plumbing, specifically, indoor plumbing in the early to mid 1800s.

Toilets have a wide variety of names including restroom, the john, outhouse, latrine, potty, privy, water closet or WC, the loo, washroom, lavatory, powder room, gents, the little girl’s or boy’s room, commode, porcelain throne, honey bucket, crapper and so many more; whew!

Here are a few more interesting facts about toilets.

1. Modern toilets use about 1.3 – 1.6 gallons (4.5 – 6 liters) of water per flush, but older models (prior to 1992) used as much as 7 gallons (24 liters) per flush.

2. King George died in 1760 after falling from his toilet, and approximately 40,000 US citizens are also injured annually by falling off a toilet.

3. Approximately 7 million US citizens have admitted to dropping their cell phone in a toilet.

4. The word ‘toilet’ originated in France and refers to the process of washing, dressing and getting ready for the day.

5. The first toilet paper on a roll was designed in 1890 by the Scott Paper Company.

Did you know that there is actually a World Toilet Day? November 19th is the day set aside by the United Nations to recognize this universal need.

Here are some of the photos I, along with a few friends and family members, have collected for this post over the past several years.

Medieval Toilets:

A few centuries later:

Today, many places of business believe we need to be entertained while using the facilities. Here are some amusing signs, prints and photos we’ve seen in toilet facilities.

Most of the photos below were taken by theTravelsketcher.

Other places of business have added a bit of elegance:

Still others offer instructions:

These two are from My Paris Corespondent, Shirley Riley:

My brother-in-law, Mike, shared these two photos:

The Japanese have a reputation for having very high tech and comfortable toilets. There is even a Toto Gallery at Narita Airport in Japan.

Years ago, I read a hilarious account of a US citizen in Japan and his experience with a toilet at a friend’s home there. As seen in these photos, Japanese toilets are quite high tech and have lots of options.

He couldn’t find the flush button, but he somehow managed to find the rinse button which proceeded to spray a stream of water across the bathroom, rinsing the counter, mirror, floor and everything in its path. He proceeded to wipe it down with the only thing he could find – toilet paper, leaving a thin film of cottony residue covering the entire bathroom. Anyone who has visited Japan can probably relate to his confusion.

There are even books about toilets, best places to go, etc. Who ever could have imagined the toilet would get so much attention?

We’re heading to San Jose del Cabo, Mexico, in a few days, so next week’s post should be much more interesting.

I hope you enjoyed this post, if not, just flush it (sorry, I couldn’t resist). As always, I’d love to hear from you so leave a message if you wish.

Tricia