More toilets in India: the Museum of Toilets

by Jamie Rhein on

Martha’s post on the World Toilet Summit in New Delhi reminded me of the one museum I wanted to go to in New Delhi, but never took the time. The Museum of Toilets is wonderful, according to a good friend of mine. He went on and on about it. The museum is a lot more than one toilet after another. As you might imagine, there’s a huge history about toilets that dates back to 2500 B.C. when the world’s first drainage system was put in. Taxes on toilets first happened in 69 A.D. and the first public toilet showed up in 1214 A.D.

And if you’ve ever been to a bathroom showroom, even today, there are many ways for a toilet to flush. I remember when I went to Denmark, my first experience living in another country, I was intrigued by the way the toilets flushed there and by the rules of toilet use. In Denmark you put the lid down when you’re done. The Museum of Toilets also gets into toilet use etiquette along with toilet design. Toilet politics is another big topic–who gets to use them and who doesn’t. Who cleans them. I don’t know if this is included in the subject matter, but I just thought of it. How many bathrooms are in a house? Over three and the assumption is that homeowner has some serious cash. Two and a half is a luxury. (The one in the photo is a replica of King Louis IIIV from the museum’s Web page.)

If you can’t make it to the museum, the Web site is fascinating read. Along with the overview of toilet use and societies there’s a section that highlights the history of particular toilets, photographs included. There is even poetry. This verse was written in the Middle Ages about Paris.

“My shoes my stockings, my overcoat
My collar, my glove, my hat
Have all been soiled by the same substance
I would mistake myself rubbish”

With what to do with human waste a large part of every society’s problems, the museum’s subject is a serious one to consider.

India’s Hosting the World Toilet Summit

by Martha Edwards on

This headline sounds like it’s a joke, but it’s actually quite serious — The World Toilet Summit has plans to convene in New Delhi later this month to discuss the john, the throne, the bog, the loo — whatever you call it, it’s where most of us do our business.

But it’s the ‘most of us’ part that’s troubling the WTS — they’d like to make toilets accessible to everyone by 2025. A lofty goal? Maybe. But it would make the world a safer place — defecating in open places is one of the biggest ways that fatal diseases are spread. And it would sure make travelling a lot more fun for westerners who are particular about where they spend a penny.

So I have to wonder — by toilets, do they mean actual sit down toilets? Or are squatties considered toilets? I’ve seen some very nice squatties in my travels, but none is as welcoming as a loo like the one at home.

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The History of Toilets: One Museum Has it All

by Jamie Rhein on

I’m so bummed. I lived in New Delhi for two years, had my “places to see list” but got too busy. Every once in awhile I remember a place I forgot to see. Here’s one: The Sulabh International Museum of Toilets. I have a vague memory of someone telling me about this place, pronouncing it “pretty neat.” But, like I said, I got busy and it’s still on my places to go list.

I can see why a person living in New Delhi might come up with the idea of a toilet museum, although New Delhi is actually a fascinating city that manages waste admirably well considering. When I heard about this museum, I thought it was just a bunch of toilets gathered together for display, but not so. Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak, the founder, is a sociologist who has studied the ideas, problems and solutions of how to get rid of human waste in an honorable way. Read Dr. Pathak’s profile to learn about India’s issues with this. It’s connected to the now abolished caste system among other things.

Besides displaying the variety of toilets over the centuries from various countries, the museum also has displays the ideas people have had about defecating. For example, there is an Arayn code of toilets that dates back to 1500 B.C. If you want to follow the code, one thing to do is to get yourself a piece of sacred thread and hold it next to your ear while doing your business. I wonder if the toilet timeline includes details about when reading the newspaper and adolescents pleas of “I have to go to the bathroom” became popular ways to avoid doing household tasks or get a few moments to oneself.

For a detailed history of ideas humans have had about toilets and doing one’s business over the centuries, click here.