Mental Floss

Evolution of a toilet

By David K. Israel

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Here's a first: I was doing the weekly Turnip yesterday and came across a bunch of dates so fascinating, I thought they deserved their own post. Via plumbingworld.com, we have highlights of the evolution of the toilet from 2500 BC to 1990 AD. (The dates come from a paper presented by Dr. Bindeswar Pathak, Ph.D., D.Litt. at the International Symposium on Public Toilets held in Hong Kong, in case you're wondering about the Indian-slant, as well as the grammar. Still, you'll be able to impress everyone around the water cooler, me thinks... especially if you click through to the paper and quote the first line: UNLIKE body functions like dance, drama and songs, defecation is considered very lowly.")

  • BC 2500: In Mohenjo - daro, there existed highly developed drainage system where waste water from each house flowed into the main drain.
  • BC 1000: In the Bahrein Island in the Persian Gulf, flush type toilet was discovered.
  • AD 69: Vespasianus (Roman Empire) for the first time levied Tax on Toilets.
  • 1214 AD: Construction for the first time of public toilets manned by scavengers in Europe.
  • 1596 AD: JD Harrington invents W.C.
  • 1668 AD: Edict issued by Police Commissioner Paris, construction of Toilets in all houses.
  • 1728 AD: Architect J.F. Brondel argues that attached toilet is ideal.
  • 1739 AD: First separate toilet for men and women appear at a ball in Paris.
  • 1824 AD: First Public Toilet in Paris.
  • 1859 AD: Toilet of Queen Victoria is decorated with gold.
  • 1883 AD: First Ceramic Toilet by Thomas Turiferd for Queen Victoria.
  • 1889 AD: Sewage Treatment for the first time in the world.
  • 1959 AD: All surface Toilets abandoned (Paris).
  • 1970 AD: Sulabh International is established by Bindeshwar Pathak, as a non-profit NGO in Bihar.
  • 1980 AD: Installation of Auto - control Public Toilet.