![Norblin Bath in the park (detail) 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Norblin_Bath_in_the_park_%28detail%29_02.jpg)
Bathing is the act of
washing
Washing is a method of cleaning, usually with water and soap or detergent. Washing and then rinsing both body and clothing is an essential part of good hygiene and health.
Often people use soaps and detergents to assist in the emulsification o ...
the body, usually with water, or the immersion of the body in water. It may be practiced for
personal hygiene
Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
, religious
ritual
A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...
or
therapeutic
A therapy or medical treatment (often abbreviated tx, Tx, or Tx) is the attempted remediation of a health problem, usually following a medical diagnosis.
As a rule, each therapy has indications and contraindications. There are many different ...
purposes. By analogy, especially as a
recreational
Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasur ...
activity, the term is also applied to
sun bathing and
sea bathing
The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Se ...
.
![Showering on Skylab (9456594881)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Showering_on_Skylab_%289456594881%29.jpg)
People bathe at a range of temperatures, according to custom or purpose, from very cold to very hot. In the western world, bathing is usually done at comfortable temperatures in a
bathtub
A bathtub, also known simply as a bath or tub, is a container for holding water in which a person or animal may bathe. Most modern bathtubs are made of thermoformed acrylic, porcelain-enameled steel or cast iron, or fiberglass-reinforced ...
or
shower. This type of bathing is done more or less daily for hygiene purposes. A ritual religious bath is sometimes referred to as
immersion
Immersion may refer to:
The arts
* "Immersion", a 2012 story by Aliette de Bodard
* ''Immersion'', a French comic book series by Léo Quievreux#Immersion, Léo Quievreux
* Immersion (album), ''Immersion'' (album), the third album by Australian gro ...
or
baptism
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...
. The use of water for therapeutic purposes can be called a water treatment or
hydrotherapy
Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy and also called water cure, is a branch of alternative medicine (particularly naturopathy), occupational therapy, and physiotherapy, that involves the use of water for pain relief and treatment. The term ...
. Recreational water activities are also known as
swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
and paddling.
History
Ancient world
Throughout history, societies devised systems to enable water to be brought to population centers.
The oldest accountable daily ritual of bathing can be traced to the
ancient India
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...
ns. They used elaborate practices for personal hygiene with three daily baths and washing. These are recorded in the works called ''
grihya sutras'' which date back to 500 BCE and are in practice today in some communities.
Bathing in Ancient China can be traced back to Shang Dynasty 3000 years ago (1600-1046 BCE). Archaeological findings from the
Yinxu
Yinxu (modern ; ) is the site of one of the ancient and major historical capitals of China. It is the source of the archeological discovery of oracle bones and oracle bone script, which resulted in the identification of the earliest known Chine ...
ruins show a cauldron to boil water, smaller cauldrons to draw out the water to be poured into a basin, skin scrapers to remove dirt and dead skin. 2300 year old lavish imperial bathrooms with exquisite tiles and a sewage system can be seen in Xi'an. Bathing grew in importance in the Han Dynasty (202 BC-AD 220) where officials were allowed to take a day's leave for bathing at home every five days, and bathing became the reason for a bank holiday for the first time.
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of Classical Antiquity, classical antiquity ( AD 600), th ...
utilized small bathtubs, wash basins, and foot baths for personal cleanliness. The earliest findings of baths date from the mid-2nd millennium BC in the palace complex at
Knossos
Knossos (also Cnossos, both pronounced ; grc, Κνωσός, Knōsós, ; Linear B: ''Ko-no-so'') is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city.
Settled as early as the Neolithic period, the na ...
, Crete, and the luxurious alabaster bathtubs excavated in
Akrotiri,
Santorini. A word for bathtub, (), occurs eleven times in Homer. As a legitimate Mycenaean word (a-sa-mi-to) for a kind of vessel that could be found in any Mycenaean palace, this Linear B term derives from an Aegean suffix ''-inth-'' being appended to an Akkadian loan word with the root ''namsû'' ('washbowl', 'washing tub'). This luxurious item of the Mycenaean palace culture, therefore, was clearly borrowed from the Near East. Later Greeks established public baths and showers within gymnasiums for relaxation and personal hygiene. The word ''gymnasium'' (γυμνάσιον) comes from the Greek word ''gymnos'' (γυμνός), meaning "naked."
Ancient Rome
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...
developed a network of
aqueducts to supply water to all large towns and population centers and had indoor plumbing, with pipes that terminated in homes and at public wells and fountains. The
Roman public baths were called
thermae
In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large imperial bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed in great numbers throughout ...
. The thermae were not simply baths, but important public works that provided facilities for many kinds of physical exercise and ablutions, with cold, warm, and hot baths, rooms for instruction and debate, and usually one Greek and one Latin library. They were provided for the public by a benefactor, usually the Emperor. Other empires of the time didn't show such an affinity for public works, but this Roman practice spread their culture to places where there may have been more resistance to foreign mores. Unusually for the time, the thermae were not class-stratified, being available to all for no charge or a small fee. With the
fall of the Roman Empire
The fall of the Western Roman Empire (also called the fall of the Roman Empire or the fall of Rome) was the loss of central political control in the Western Roman Empire, a process in which the Empire failed to enforce its rule, and its vas ...
, the aqueduct system fell into disrepair and disuse. But even before that, during the Christianization of the Empire, changing ideas about public morals led the baths into disfavor.
Medieval Japan
Before the 7th century, the Japanese were likely to have bathed in the many springs in the open, as there is no evidence of closed rooms. In the 6th to 8th centuries (in the
Asuka
Asuka may refer to:
People
* Asuka (name), a list of people
* Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler
* Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan
Places In Japan
* , an area in Yamato Province (now ...
and
Nara period
The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the c ...
s) the Japanese absorbed the religion of Buddhism from China, which had a strong impact on the culture of the entire country. Buddhist temples traditionally included a bathhouse (''yuya'') for the monks. Due to the principle of purity espoused by Buddhism these baths were eventually opened to the public. Only the wealthy had private baths.
The first public bathhouse was mentioned in 1266. In
Edo (modern Tokyo), the first ''
sentō
is a type of Japanese communal bathhouse where customers pay for entrance. Traditionally these bathhouses have been quite utilitarian, with a tall barrier separating the sexes within one large room, a minimum of lined-up faucets on both sides ...
'' was established in 1591. The early steam baths were called ''iwaburo'' ( "rock pools") or ''kamaburo'' ( "furnace baths"). These were built into natural caves or stone vaults. In ''iwaburo'' along the coast, the rocks were heated by burning wood, then sea water was poured over the rocks, producing steam. The entrances to these "bath houses" were very small, possibly to slow the escape of the heat and steam. There were no windows, so it was very dark inside and the user constantly coughed or cleared their throats in order to signal to new entrants which seats were already occupied. The darkness could be also used to cover sexual contact. Because there was no gender distinction, these baths came into disrepute. They were finally abolished in 1870 on hygienic and moral grounds. Author John Gallagher says bathing "was segregated in the 1870s as a concession to outraged Western tourists".
At the beginning of the
Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...
(1603–1868) there were two different types of baths. In Edo, hot-water baths (' ') were common, while in Osaka, steam baths ( ') were common. At that time shared bathrooms for men and women were the rule. These bathhouses were very popular, especially for men. "Bathing girls" ( ') were employed to scrub the guests' backs and wash their hair, etc. In 1841, the employment of ''yuna'' was generally prohibited, as well as
mixed bathing
Mixed bathing is the sharing of a pool, beach or other place by swimmers of both sexes. Mixed bathing usually refers to swimming or other water-based recreational activities in public or semi-public facilities, such as hotel or holiday resort pool ...
. The segregation of the sexes, however, was often ignored by operators of bathhouses, or areas for men and women were separated only by a symbolic line. Today, ''sento'' baths have separate rooms for men and women.
Mesoamerica
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
chronicles describe the bathing habits of the peoples of
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area in southern North America and most of Central America. It extends from approximately central Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica ...
during and after the
conquest
Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms.
Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...
.
Bernal Díaz del Castillo
Bernal Díaz del Castillo ( 1492 – 3 February 1584) was a Spanish conquistador, who participated as a soldier in the conquest of the Aztec Empire under Hernán Cortés and late in his life wrote an account of the events. As an experience ...
describes
Moctezuma (the Mexica, or Aztec, king at the arrival of
Cortés) in his ''Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España'' as being "...Very neat and cleanly, bathing every day each afternoon...".
Bathing was not restricted to the elite, but was practised by all people; the chronicler Tomás López Medel wrote after a journey to
Central America
Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...
that "Bathing and the custom of washing oneself is so quotidian (common) amongst the Indians, both of cold and hot lands, as is eating, and this is done in fountains and rivers and other water to which they have access, without anything other than pure water..."
[Hernández, J. C. (n.d.). www.izt.uam.mx. Retrieved December 18, 2012, from ]
The Mesoamerican bath, known as ''temazcal'' in
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
, from the Nahuatl word ''temazcalli'', a compound of ''temaz'' ("steam") and ''calli'' ("house"), consists of a room, often in the form of a small dome, with an exterior firebox known as ''texictle'' (teʃict͜ɬe) that heats a small portion of the room's wall made of volcanic rocks; after this wall has been heated, water is poured on it to produce steam, an action known as ''tlasas''. As the steam accumulates in the upper part of the room a person in charge uses a bough to direct the steam to the bathers who are lying on the ground, with which he later gives them a massage, then the bathers scrub themselves with a small flat river stone and finally the person in charge introduces buckets with water with soap and grass used to rinse. This bath had also ritual importance, and was vinculated to the goddess
Toci
Toci (; nci, tocih, , “our grandmother”) is a deity figuring prominently in the religion and mythology of the pre-Columbian Aztec civilization of Mesoamerica. In Aztec mythology, she is seen as an aspect of the mother goddess Coatlicue or X ...
; it is also therapeutic when medicinal herbs are used in the water for the ''tlasas''. It is still used in
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
.
Medieval and early-modern Europe
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
has always placed a strong emphasis on
hygiene
Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
.
Despite the denunciation of the
mixed bathing
Mixed bathing is the sharing of a pool, beach or other place by swimmers of both sexes. Mixed bathing usually refers to swimming or other water-based recreational activities in public or semi-public facilities, such as hotel or holiday resort pool ...
style of Roman pools by
early Christian clergy, as well as the pagan custom of women bathing naked in front of men, this did not stop the Church from urging its followers to go to public baths for bathing,
which contributed to hygiene and good health according to the
Church Father
The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical pe ...
s,
Clement of Alexandria
Titus Flavius Clemens, also known as Clement of Alexandria ( grc , Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς; – ), was a Christian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Catechetical School of Alexandria. Among his pupils were Origen an ...
and
Tertullian
Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...
. The Church also built
public bathing
Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...
facilities that were separate for both sexes near monasteries and pilgrimage sites; also, the popes situated baths within church basilicas and monasteries since the early Middle Ages.
Pope
Gregory the Great
Pope Gregory I ( la, Gregorius I; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was the bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 to his death. He is known for instigating the first recorded large-scale mission from Rome, the Gregoria ...
urged his followers on value of bathing as a bodily need.
Great
bathhouses were built in
Byzantine centers such as
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...
and
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ ...
, and the
popes
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
allocated to the Romans bathing through ''
diaconia A diaconia was originally an establishment built near a church building, for the care of the poor and distribution of the church's charity in medieval Rome or Naples (the successor to the Roman grain supply system, often standing on the very sites o ...
'', or private
Lateran
250px, Basilica and Palace - side view
Lateran and Laterano are the shared names of several buildings in Rome. The properties were once owned by the Lateranus family of the Roman Empire. The Laterani lost their properties to Emperor Constantine ...
baths, or even a myriad of monastic
bath houses functioning in eighth and ninth centuries.
The
Popes
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
maintained their baths in their residences which described by scholar Paolo Squatriti as "luxurious baths", and
bath houses including hot baths incorporated into Christian Church buildings or those of monasteries, which known as "
charity baths" because they served both the clerics and needy poor people.
Public bathing
Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...
were common in medivail
Christendom
Christendom historically refers to the Christian states, Christian-majority countries and the countries in which Christianity dominates, prevails,SeMerriam-Webster.com : dictionary, "Christendom"/ref> or is culturally or historically intertwine ...
larger towns and cities such as
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
,
Regensburg and
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
. Catholic religious orders of the
Augustinians' and
Benedictines' rules contained
ritual purification
Ritual purification is the ritual prescribed by a religion by which a person is considered to be free of ''uncleanliness'', especially prior to the worship of a deity, and ritual purity is a state of ritual cleanliness. Ritual purification may ...
, and inspired by
Benedict of Nursia encouragement for the practice of therapeutic bathing;
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
monks played a role in the development and promotion of
spas.
Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
also played a prominent role in the development of the British
spas.
In the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, bathing commonly took place in
public bathhouse
Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...
s. Public baths were also havens for
prostitution, which created some opposition to them. Rich people bathed at home, most likely in their bedroom, as 'bath' rooms were not common. Bathing was done in large, wooden tubs with a linen cloth laid in it to protect the bather from splinters. Additionally, during the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
and
Protestant Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...
, the quality and condition of the clothing (as opposed to the actual cleanliness of the body itself) were thought to reflect the soul of an individual. Clean clothing also reflected one's social status; clothes made the man or woman.
Modern era
Therapeutic bathing
Public opinion about bathing began to shift in the middle and late 18th century, when writers argued that frequent bathing might lead to better health. Two English works on the medical uses of water were published in the 18th century that inaugurated the new fashion for
therapeutic bathing. One of these was by Sir
John Floyer, a physician of
Lichfield
Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...
, who, struck by the remedial use of certain springs by the neighbouring peasantry, investigated the history of cold bathing and published a book on the subject in 1702.
The book ran through six editions within a few years and the translation of this book into German was largely drawn upon by Dr J. S. Hahn of
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
as the basis for his book called ''On the Healing Virtues of Cold Water, Inwardly and Outwardly Applied, as Proved by Experience'', published in 1738.
[Hahn, J.S. (1738). ''On the Power and Effect of Cold Water.'' Cited in Richard Metcalfe (1898), pp.5–6. Per ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', this was also titled ''On the Healing Virtues of Cold Water, Inwardly and Outwardly applied, as proved by Experience'']
The other work was a 1797 publication by Dr
James Currie of
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
on the use of hot and cold water in the treatment of fever and other illness, with a fourth edition published not long before his death in 1805. It was also translated into German by Michaelis (1801) and
Hegewisch
Hegewisch (pronounced "heg-wish" by the locals) is one of the 77 community areas of Chicago, Illinois, located on the city's far south side. It is bordered by the neighborhoods of Riverdale and South Deering to the west, the East Side to the ...
(1807). It was highly popular and first placed the subject on a scientific basis. Hahn's writings had meanwhile created much enthusiasm among his countrymen, societies having been everywhere formed to promote the medicinal and dietetic use of water; in 1804 Professor E.F.C. Oertel of
Anspach republished them and quickened the popular movement by the unqualified commendation of water drinking as a remedy for all diseases.
A popular revival followed the application of hydrotherapy around 1829, by
Vincenz Priessnitz
Vincenz Priessnitz, also written Prießnitz (sometimes in German ''Vinzenz'', in English ''Vincent'', in Czech ''Vincenc''; 4 October 1799 – 26 November 1851) was a peasant farmer in Gräfenberg, Austrian Silesia, who is generally considered ...
, a peasant farmer in
Gräfenberg, then part of the
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...
.
This revival was continued by a Bavarian priest,
Sebastian Kneipp
Sebastian Kneipp (17 May 1821 – 17 June 1897) was a German Catholic priest and one of the forefathers of the naturopathic medicine movement. He is most commonly associated with the "Kneipp Cure" form of hydrotherapy (often called "Kneipp ther ...
(1821–1897), "an able and enthusiastic follower" of Priessnitz, "whose work he took up where Priessnitz left it", after he read a treatise on the cold water cure. In
Wörishofen (south Germany), Kneipp developed the systematic and controlled application of hydrotherapy for the support of medical treatment that was delivered only by doctors at that time. Kneipp's own book ''My Water Cure'' was published in 1886 with many subsequent editions, and translated into many languages.
Captain R. T. Claridge
Captain Richard Tappin Claridge, FSA (c. 1797/1799 – 5 August 1857), was a prominent asphalt contractor and captain in the Middlesex UK Militia, who became best known for his prominent promotion of hydropathy, now known as hydrotherapy, in th ...
was responsible for introducing and promoting hydropathy in Britain, first in London in 1842, then with lecture tours in Ireland and Scotland in 1843. His 10-week tour in Ireland included Limerick, Cork, Wexford, Dublin and Belfast, over June, July and August 1843, with two subsequent lectures in Glasgow.
Public baths
![1914 INTERIOR OF UPPER FREDERICK STREET WASH HOUSE](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/1914_INTERIOR_OF_UPPER_FREDERICK_STREET_WASH_HOUSE.jpg)
Large public baths such as those found in the ancient world and the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
were revived during the 19th century. The first modern public baths were opened in
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
in 1829. The first known warm fresh-water
public wash house was opened in May 1842.
The popularity of wash-houses was spurred by the newspaper interest in
Kitty Wilkinson, an Irish immigrant "wife of a labourer" who became known as the ''Saint of the Slums''.
In 1832, during a
cholera epidemic, Wilkinson took the initiative to offer the use of her house and yard to neighbours to wash their clothes, at a charge of a penny per week,
[ and showed them how to use a ]chloride of lime
Calcium hypochlorite is an inorganic compound with formula Ca(OCl)2. It is the main active ingredient of commercial products called bleaching powder, chlorine powder, or chlorinated lime, used for water treatment and as a bleaching agent. This ...
(bleach) to get them clean. She was supported by the District Provident Society and William Rathbone. In 1842, Wilkinson was appointed baths superintendent.
In Birmingham, around ten private baths were available in the 1830s. Whilst the dimensions of the baths were small, they provided a range of services. A major proprietor of bath houses in Birmingham was a Mr. Monro who had had premises in Lady Well and Snow Hill.[''The Birmingham Journal'': Private Bath Advertisements, 17 May 1851] Private baths were advertised as having healing qualities and being able to cure people of diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...
, gout
Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intens ...
and all skin diseases, amongst others. On 19 November 1844, it was decided that the working class
The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colo ...
members of society should have the opportunity to access baths, in an attempt to address the health problems of the public. On 22 April and 23 April 1845, two lectures were delivered in the town hall urging the provision of public baths in Birmingham and other towns and cities.
After a period of campaigning by many committees, the Public Baths and Wash-houses Act received royal assent
Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in oth ...
on 26 August 1846. The act empowered local authorities
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
across the country to incur expenditure in constructing public swimming baths out of its own funds.
The first London public baths was opened at Goulston Square, Whitechapel
Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...
, in 1847 with the Prince consort laying the foundation stone.
Hot public baths
"Turkish" baths (based on the traditional Muslim bathhouses which are derived from the Roman bath) were introduced to Britain by David Urquhart
David Urquhart Jr. (1 July 180516 May 1877) was a Scottish diplomat, writer and politician, serving as a Member of Parliament from 1847 to 1852. He also was an early promotor of the Turkish bath in the United Kingdom.
Early life
Urquhart was bo ...
, diplomat and sometime Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
for Stafford, who for political and personal reasons wished to popularize Turkish culture. In 1850 he wrote ''The Pillars of Hercules'', a book about his travels in 1848 through Spain and Morocco. He described the system of dry hot-air baths used there and in the Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
which had changed little since Roman times. In 1856 Richard Barter read Urquhart's book and worked with him to construct a bath. They opened the first modern hot water bath at St Ann's Hydropathic Establishment
Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy and also called water cure, is a branch of alternative medicine (particularly naturopathy), occupational therapy, and physiotherapy, that involves the use of water for pain relief and treatment. The te ...
near Blarney
Blarney () is a suburban town within the administrative area of Cork City in Ireland. It is located approximately north-west of the city centre. It is the site of Blarney Castle, home of the legendary Blarney Stone. Blarney is part of the Dáil ...
, County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
, Ireland.
The following year, the first public bath of its type to be built in mainland Britain since Roman times was opened in Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, and the idea spread rapidly. It reached London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
in July 1860, when Roger Evans, a member of one of Urquhart's Foreign Affairs Committees, opened a Turkish bath at 5 Bell Street, near Marble Arch
The Marble Arch is a 19th-century white marble-faced triumphal arch in London, England. The structure was designed by John Nash in 1827 to be the state entrance to the cour d'honneur of Buckingham Palace; it stood near the site of what is toda ...
. During the following 150 years, over 600 Turkish baths opened in Britain, including those built by municipal authorities as part of swimming pool complexes, taking advantage of the fact that water-heating boilers were already on site.
Similar baths opened in other parts of the British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...
. Dr. John Le Gay Brereton opened a Turkish bath in Sydney, Australia in 1859, Canada had one by 1869, and the first in New Zealand was opened in 1874. Urquhart's influence was also felt outside the Empire when in 1861, Dr Charles H Shepard opened the first Turkish baths in the United States at 63 Columbia Street, Brooklyn Heights, New York, most probably on 3 October 1863.
Soap promoted for personal cleanliness
By the mid-19th century, the English urbanised middle classes had formed an ideology of cleanliness that ranked alongside typical Victorian concepts, such as Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
, respectability and social progress
Progress is the movement towards a refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. In the context of progressivism, it refers to the proposition that advancements in technology, science, and social organization have resulted, and by extension wi ...
. The cleanliness of the individual became associated with his or her moral and social standing within the community and domestic life became increasingly regulated by concerns regarding the presentation of domestic sobriety and cleanliness.
The industry of soapmaking began on a small scale in the 1780s, with the establishment of a soap manufactory at Tipton
Tipton is an industrial town in the West Midlands in England with a population of around 38,777 at the 2011 UK Census. It is located northwest of Birmingham.
Tipton was once one of the most heavily industrialised towns in the Black Country, w ...
by James Keir
James Keir FRS (20 September 1735 – 11 October 1820) was a Scottish chemist, geologist, industrialist, and inventor, and an important member of the Lunar Society of Birmingham.
Life and work
Keir was born in Stirlingshire, Scotland, in ...
and the marketing of high-quality, transparent soap in 1789 by Andrew Pears
Andrew Pears was an English man, born around 1770, who invented transparent soap. He moved to London in 1789 from his home in Mevagissey, Cornwall, where he had trained as a barber.
He opened a barber's shop in the then-fashionable residential ...
of London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. It was in the mid-19th century, though, that the large-scale consumption of soap by the middle classes, anxious to prove their social standing, drove forward the mass production and marketing of soap.
William Gossage
William Gossage (12 May 1799 – 9 April 1877) was a chemical manufacturer who established a soap making business in Widnes, Lancashire, England.
Early life
William Gossage was born in the village of Burgh-le-Marsh, Lincolnshire to Thomas and El ...
produced low-priced, good-quality soap from the 1850s. William Hesketh Lever
William Hesketh Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme , (, ; 19 September 1851 – 7 May 1925) was an English industrialist, philanthropist, and politician. Having been educated at a small private school until the age of nine, then at church schools ...
and his brother, James, bought a small soap works in Warrington
Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...
in 1886 and founded what is still one of the largest soap businesses, formerly called Lever Brothers and now called Unilever
Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy dri ...
. These soap businesses were among the first to employ large-scale advertising
Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
campaigns.
Before the late 19th century, water to individual places of residence was rare. Many countries in Europe developed a water collection and distribution network. London water supply infrastructure
London's water supply infrastructure has developed over the centuries in line with the expansion of London. For much of London's history, private companies supplied fresh water to various parts of London from wells, the River Thames and the Rive ...
developed through major 19th-century treatment works built in response to cholera threats, to modern large-scale reservoirs. By the end of the century, private baths with running hot water were increasingly common in affluent homes in America and Britain.
At the beginning of the 20th century, a weekly Saturday night bath had become common custom for most of the population. A half day's work on Saturday for factory workers allowed them some leisure to prepare for the Sunday day of rest. The half day off allowed time for the considerable labor of drawing, carrying, and heating water, filling the bath and then afterward emptying it. To economize, bath water was shared by all family members. Indoor plumbing became more common in the 20th century and commercial advertising campaigns pushing new bath products began to influence public ideas about cleanliness, promoting the idea of a daily shower or bath.
In the twenty-first century challenges to the need for soap to effect such everyday cleanliness and whether soap is needed to avoid body odor, appeared in media.[Fleming, Amy, ]
‘I don’t smell!’ Meet the people who have stopped washing
', The Guardian, August 5, 2019
Purpose
One purpose of bathing is for personal hygiene
Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
. It is a means of achieving cleanliness
Cleanliness is both the state of being clean and free from germs, dirt, trash, or waste, and the habit of achieving and maintaining that state. Cleanliness is often achieved through cleaning. Culturally, cleanliness is usually a good quality, as ...
by washing away dead skin cells, dirt, and soil and as a preventative measure to reduce the incidence and spread of disease. It also may reduce body odors, however, some people note that may not be so necessary as commonly thought.
Bathing creates a feeling of well-being and the physical appearance of cleanliness.
Bathing may also be practised for religious ritual
A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...
or therapeutic purposes or as a recreational activity. Bathing may be used to cool or to warm the body of an individual.
Therapeutic use of bathing includes hydrotherapy
Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy and also called water cure, is a branch of alternative medicine (particularly naturopathy), occupational therapy, and physiotherapy, that involves the use of water for pain relief and treatment. The term ...
, healing, rehabilitation from injury or addiction, and relaxation.
The use of a bath in religious ritual or ceremonial rite Rite may refer to:
* Ritual, an established ceremonious act
* Rite of passage, a ceremonious act associated with social transition
Religion
* Rite (Christianity), a sacred ritual or liturgical tradition in various Christian denominations
* Cath ...
s include immersion during baptism
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...
in Christianity and to achieve a state of ritual cleanliness in a '' mikvah'' in Judaism. It is referred to as '' Ghusl'' in Arabic to attain ceremonial purity (''Taahir'') in Islam. All major religions place an emphasis on ceremonial purity, and bathing is one of the primary means of attaining outward purity. In Hindu households, any acts of defilement are countered by undergoing a bath and Hindus also immerse in Sarovar as part of religious rites. In the Sikh religion, there is a place at Golden Temple where the leprosy of Rajni's husband was cured by immersion into the holy sacred pool, and many pilgrims bathe in the sacred pool believing it will cure their illness as well.
Types of baths
Where bathing is for personal hygiene, bathing in a bathtub
A bathtub, also known simply as a bath or tub, is a container for holding water in which a person or animal may bathe. Most modern bathtubs are made of thermoformed acrylic, porcelain-enameled steel or cast iron, or fiberglass-reinforced ...
or shower is the most common form of bathing in Western, and many Eastern, countries. Bathrooms usually have a tap, and a shower if it is a modern home, and a huge water heating pot. People take water from the tap or the water-heating pot into a large bucket and use a mug to pour water on themselves. A soap and loofah is used to clean the body after, and then rinsed again using the mug. People most commonly bath in their home or use a private bath in a public bathhouse. In some societies, bathing can take place in rivers, creeks, lakes or water holes, or any other place where there is an adequate pool of water. The quality of water used for bathing purposes varies considerably. Normally bathing involves use of soap
Soap is a salt of a fatty acid used in a variety of cleansing and lubricating products. In a domestic setting, soaps are surfactants usually used for washing, bathing, and other types of housekeeping. In industrial settings, soaps are use ...
or a soap-like substance, such as shower gel. In southern India people more commonly use aromatic oil and other home-made body scrubs.
Bathing occasions can also be occasions of social interactions, such as in public
In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichk ...
, Turkish, banya
Banya may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Banya, Queensland, a locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia
Bulgaria
* Banya, Blagoevgrad Province, a thermal spa and mountain resort in southwest Bulgaria
* Banya, Burgas P ...
, sauna
A sauna (, ), or sudatory, is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a ...
or whirlpool
A whirlpool is a body of rotating water produced by opposing currents or a current running into an obstacle. Small whirlpools form when a bath or a sink is draining. More powerful ones formed in seas or oceans may be called maelstroms ( ). ''Vo ...
baths.
Sponge bath
When water is in short supply or a person is not fit to have a standing bath, a wet cloth or sponge
Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate throug ...
can be used, or the person can wash by splashing water over their body. A sponge bath is usually conducted in hospitals, which involves one person washing another with a sponge
Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate throug ...
, while the person being washed remains lying in bed.
Ladling water from a container
This method involves using a small container to scoop water out of a large container and pour water over the body, in such a way that this water does not go back into the large container.
In Indonesia and Malaysia, this is a traditional method referred to as ''mandi''.
In the Indonesian language, ''mandi'' is the verb for this process; ''bak mandi'' is the large container, and ''kamar mandi'' is the place in which this is done. Travel guides often use the word ''mandi'' on its own or in various ways such as for the large container and for the process of bathing.
In the Philippines, ''timba'' (pail) and '' tabo'' (dipper) are two essentials in every bathroom.
Clothing
When bathing for cleanliness, normally, people bathe completely naked
Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing.
The loss of body hair was one of the physical characteristics that marked the biological evolution of modern humans from their hominin ancestors. Adaptations related to h ...
, so as to make cleaning every part of their body possible. This is the case in private baths, whether in one's home or a private bath in a public bathhouse. In public bathing
Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...
situations, the social norms of the community are followed, and some people wear a swimsuit or underwear. For example, when a shower is provided in a non-sex segregated
Sex segregation, sex separation, gender segregation or gender separation is the physical, legal, or cultural separation of people according to their biological sex. Sex segregation can refer simply to the physical and spatial separation by sex w ...
area of a public swimming pool, users of the shower commonly wear their swimsuit. The customs can vary depending on the age of a person, and whether the bathing is in a sex segregated
Sex segregation, sex separation, gender segregation or gender separation is the physical, legal, or cultural separation of people according to their biological sex. Sex segregation can refer simply to the physical and spatial separation by sex w ...
situation. In some societies, some communal bathing is also done without clothing.
When swimming, not wearing clothing is sometimes called skinny dipping.
Bathing babies
Babies can be washed in a kitchen sink or a small plastic baby bath, instead of using a standard bath which offers little control of the infant's movements and requires the parent to lean awkwardly or kneel. Bathing infants too often has been linked to the development of asthma
Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, co ...
or severe eczema
Dermatitis is inflammation of the skin, typically characterized by itchiness, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become thickened. The area of skin involved can ...
according to some researchers, including Michael Welch, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics' section on allergy and immunology. A safe temperature for the bathwater is generally held to be .
Japanese bathing culture
Private baths
Today, most homes in Japan have a bathroom (''ofuro''), which was often not the case about 30 years ago. Bath water in Japan is much hotter than what is usual in Central Europe. The temperature is usually well above 40 °C. In medical literature, 47 °C is considered bearable. The heat is considered a prerequisite for complete relaxation. The custom is to thoroughly clean oneself with soap and rinse before entering the tub, so as not to contaminate the bath water. Until the 19th century, the Japanese did not use soap, but rubbed the skin with certain herbs, or rice bran, which was also a natural exfoliant.
Public baths
In public baths, there is a distinction between those with natural hot springs called, ''onsen'' (hot), and the other, the '' sento''. Since Japan is located in a volcanically active region, there are many hot springs, of which about 2000 are swimming pools. Most ''onsen'' are in the open countryside, but they are also found in cities. In Tokyo, for example, there are about 25 ''onsen'' baths. Locations of known mineral springs spas are on the Western model.
An '' onsen'', consists mostly of outdoor pools (''rotenburo''), which are sometimes at different temperatures. Extremely hot springs, where even experienced or frequent hot-spring bathers can only stay a few minutes, are called ''jigoku'' (hell). Many ''onsen'' also have saunas, spa treatments and therapy centers. The same rules apply in public baths as in private baths, with bathers required to wash and clean themselves before entering the water. In general, the Japanese bathe naked in bathhouses; bathing suits are not permissible.
Art motif
Bathing scenes were already in the Middle Ages a popular subject of painters. Most of the subjects were women shown nude, but the interest was probably less to the bathing itself rather than to provide the context for representing the nude figure. From the Middle Ages, illustrated books of the time contained such bathing scenes. Biblical and mythological themes which featured bathing were depicted by numerous painters. Especially popular themes included Bathsheba in the bath, in which she is observed by King David, and Susanna in the sight of lecherous old men.
In the High Middle Ages, public baths were a popular subject of painting, with rather clear depictions of sexual advances, which probably were not based on actual observations. During the Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
and Baroque periods, the gods and nymphs of Greek mythology
A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...
were depicted bathing in allegorical paintings by artists such as Titian
Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian (Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, nea ...
and François Boucher, both of whom painted the goddess Diana bathing. Artists continued to paint Biblical characters bathing, and also sometimes depicted contemporary women bathing in the river, an example being Rembrandt's ''Woman Bathing''.
In the 19th century, the use of the bathing scene reached its high point in classicism
Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthet ...
, realism
Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to:
In the arts
*Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts
Arts movements related to realism include:
*Classical Realism
*Literary realism, a move ...
and impressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...
. Oriental themes and harem and turkish bath
A hammam ( ar, حمّام, translit=ḥammām, tr, hamam) or Turkish bath is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the culture of the Muslim world and was inherited ...
s scenes became popular. These scenes were based on the artists' imagination, because access by men to Islamic women was not generally permitted.[Alev Lytle Croutier: ''Wasser. Elixier des Lebens.'' Heyne, München 1992, S. 187 ff. ] In the second half of the century, artists increasingly eschewed the pretexts of mythology and exoticism, and painted contemporary western women bathing. Edgar Degas, for example, painted over 100 paintings with a bathing theme. The subject of Bathers remained popular in avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
circles at the outset of the 20th century.
Notable artists who have represented bathing scenes:
* Lawrence Alma-Tadema
Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, (; born Lourens Alma Tadema ; 8 January 1836 – 25 June 1912) was a Dutch painter who later settled in the United Kingdom becoming the last officially recognised denizen in 1873. Born in Dronryp, the Netherlands, ...
* Pierre Bonnard
* William-Adolphe Bouguereau
William-Adolphe Bouguereau (; 30 November 1825 – 19 August 1905) was a French academic painter. In his realistic genre paintings, he used mythological themes, making modern interpretations of classical subjects, with an emphasis on the female ...
* François Boucher
* Paul Cézanne
Paul Cézanne ( , , ; ; 19 January 1839 – 22 October 1906) was a French artist and Post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th-century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically d ...
* Gustave Courbet
Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet ( , , ; 10 June 1819 – 31 December 1877) was a French painter who led the Realism movement in 19th-century French painting. Committed to painting only what he could see, he rejected academic convention and ...
* Lucas Cranach the Younger
Lucas Cranach the Younger (german: Lucas Cranach der Jüngere ; October 4, 1515 – January 25, 1586) was a German Renaissance painter and portraitist, the son of Lucas Cranach the Elder and brother of Hans Cranach.
Life and career
Lucas Cranach ...
* Edgar Degas
* Albrecht Dürer
* Anthony van Dyck
* Roger de La Fresnaye
Roger de La Fresnaye (; 11 July 1885 – 27 November 1925) was a French Cubist painter.
Early years and education
La Fresnaye was born in Le Mans where his father, an officer in the French army, was temporarily stationed. The La Fresnayes were ...
* Paul Gauguin
Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (, ; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of colour and Synthetist style that were distinct fr ...
* Jean-Léon Gérôme
Jean-Léon Gérôme (11 May 1824 – 10 January 1904) was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as academicism. His paintings were so widely reproduced that he was "arguably the world's most famous living artist by 1880." The ra ...
* Albert Gleizes
Albert Gleizes (; 8 December 1881 – 23 June 1953) was a French artist, theoretician, philosopher, a self-proclaimed founder of Cubism and an influence on the School of Paris. Albert Gleizes and Jean Metzinger wrote the first major treatise on ...
* Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres ( , ; 29 August 1780 – 14 January 1867) was a French Neoclassical painter. Ingres was profoundly influenced by past artistic traditions and aspired to become the guardian of academic orthodoxy against the ...
* Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (6 May 1880 – 15 June 1938) was a German expressionist painter and printmaker and one of the founders of the artists group Die Brücke or "The Bridge", a key group leading to the foundation of Expressionism in 20th-century ...
* Boris Kustodiev
Boris Mikhaylovich Kustodiev (russian: Бори́с Миха́йлович Кусто́диев; – 28 May 1927) was a Russian and Soviet painter and stage designer.
Early life
Boris Kustodiev was born in Astrakhan into the family of a profe ...
* Max Liebermann
Max Liebermann (20 July 1847 – 8 February 1935) was a German painter and printmaker, and one of the leading proponents of Impressionism in Germany and continental Europe. In addition to his activity as an artist, he also assembled an important ...
* Édouard Manet
Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism.
Bo ...
* Jean Metzinger
Jean Dominique Antony Metzinger (; 24 June 1883 – 3 November 1956) was a major 20th-century French painter, theorist, writer, critic and poet, who along with Albert Gleizes wrote the first theoretical work on Cubism. His earliest works, from 1 ...
* Pablo Picasso
Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
* Pierre-Auguste Renoir
* Sebastiano Ricci
* Zinaida Serebriakova
Zinaida Yevgenyevna Serebriakova (russian: Зинаида Евгеньевна Серебрякова; – 20 September 1967) was a Russian and later French painter.
Family
Zinaida Serebryakova was born on the estate of Neskuchnoye near Kh ...
* Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida
Joaquín or Joaquin is a male given name, the Spanish version of Joachim.
Given name
* Joaquín (footballer, born 1956), Spanish football midfielder
* Joaquín (footballer, born 1981), Spanish football winger
* Joaquín (footballer, born 1982 ...
* Domenico Tintoretto
Domenico Robusti, also known as Domenico Tintoretto, (1560 – 17 May 1635) was an Italian painter from Venice. He grew up under the tutelage of his father, the renowned painter Jacopo Tintoretto.
Life
Apprenticeship
Domenico was born in V ...
* Titian
Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian (Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, nea ...
* Anders Zorn
Anders Leonard Zorn (18 February 1860 – 22 August 1920) was a Swedish painter. He attained international success as a painter, sculptor, and etching artist. Among Zorn's portrait subjects include King Oscar II of Sweden and three American ...
File:Albrecht Durer, "Woman's Bath".jpg, Albrecht Dürer, ''Women bathing'', 1496
File:Lucas Cranach d.Ä. - Das Goldene Zeitalter (Nasjonalgalleriet, Oslo).jpg, Lucas Cranach Cranach is a German-language surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*Augustin Cranach (1554–1595), German painter
*Hans Cranach (c. 1513–1537), German painter
*Lucas Cranach the Elder (c. 1472–1553), German artist
*Lucas Cranach th ...
, ''The Golden Age'', 1530
File:Titian - Diana and Actaeon - 1556-1559.jpg, Titian
Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian (Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, nea ...
, ''Actaeon Surprises Diana in Her Bath'', 1559
File:Rembrandt, Harmenszoon van Rijn - Diana mit Aktäon und Kallisto - c.1634-1635.jpg, Rembrandt van Rijn
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consi ...
, '' Diana with Actaeon and Callisto Callisto most commonly refers to:
*Callisto (mythology), a nymph
*Callisto (moon), a moon of Jupiter
Callisto may also refer to:
Art and entertainment
*''Callisto series'', a sequence of novels by Lin Carter
*''Callisto'', a novel by Torsten Kro ...
'', 1634/1635
File:Heimbach-Badende Mädchen-WUS03225.jpg, Wolfgang Heimbach
Wolfgang Heimbach (1615–1678) was a North German Baroque painter, mostly active in Denmark.
Heimbach was from Oldenburg and studied in Germany and the Low Countries. He was deaf-mute but compensated by being able to read and write several l ...
, ''People Bathing'', 1640
File:Boucher Diane sortant du bain Louvre 2712.jpg, François Boucher, ''Diana Leaving Her Bath'', 1742
File:Japanerin badet.jpg, Torii Kiyomitsu
was a painter and printmaker of the Torii school of Japanese ''ukiyo-e'' art; the son of Torii Kiyonobu II or Torii Kiyomasu II, he was the third head of the school, and was originally called Kamejirō before taking the ''art-name, gō'' Kiyo ...
, ''Bathing Woman'', 1750
File:Le Bain Turc, by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, from C2RMF retouched.jpg, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, ''The Turkish Bath
''The Turkish Bath'' (') is an oil painting by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, initially completed between 1852 and 1859, but modified in 1862. The painting depicts a group of nude women at a pool in a harem. It has an erotic style that evokes ...
'', 1862
File:Gérome_Bad.jpg, Jean-Léon Gérôme
Jean-Léon Gérôme (11 May 1824 – 10 January 1904) was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as academicism. His paintings were so widely reproduced that he was "arguably the world's most famous living artist by 1880." The ra ...
, ''The Bath'', ca. 1880
File:Degas_Nach dem Bade.jpg, Edgar Degas, ''After the Bath'', ca. 1890
File:Paul Gauguin - Fatata te Miti (By the Sea) - Google Art Project.jpg, Paul Gauguin
Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (, ; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of colour and Synthetist style that were distinct fr ...
, ''By the Sea'', 1892
File:Detail from Paul Cézanne, French - The Large Bathers - Google Art Project.jpg, Paul Cézanne
Paul Cézanne ( , , ; ; 19 January 1839 – 22 October 1906) was a French artist and Post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th-century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically d ...
, ''The Large Bathers'' (detail)
File:The Baths at Caracalla.jpg, Lawrence Alma-Tadema
Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, (; born Lourens Alma Tadema ; 8 January 1836 – 25 June 1912) was a Dutch painter who later settled in the United Kingdom becoming the last officially recognised denizen in 1873. Born in Dronryp, the Netherlands, ...
, ''The Baths at Caracalla
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...
'', 1899
File:Liebermann Badende Jungen 1900.jpeg, Max Liebermann
Max Liebermann (20 July 1847 – 8 February 1935) was a German painter and printmaker, and one of the leading proponents of Impressionism in Germany and continental Europe. In addition to his activity as an artist, he also assembled an important ...
, ''Bathing Boys'', 1900
File:Triste herencia, por Joaquín Sorolla.jpg, Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida
Joaquín or Joaquin is a male given name, the Spanish version of Joachim.
Given name
* Joaquín (footballer, born 1956), Spanish football midfielder
* Joaquín (footballer, born 1981), Spanish football winger
* Joaquín (footballer, born 1982 ...
, ''Sad Inheritance'', 1900. Crippled children bathing at the sea in Valencia
File:Girls from Dalarna Having a Bath (Anders Zorn) - Nationalmuseum - 18642.tif, Anders Zorn
Anders Leonard Zorn (18 February 1860 – 22 August 1920) was a Swedish painter. He attained international success as a painter, sculptor, and etching artist. Among Zorn's portrait subjects include King Oscar II of Sweden and three American ...
, ''Girls from Dalarna Having a Bath'', 1906
File:Jean Metzinger, 1905-06, Baigneuse, Deux nus dans un jardin exotique (Two Nudes in an Exotic Landscape), oil on canvas, 116 x 88.8 cm.jpg, Jean Metzinger
Jean Dominique Antony Metzinger (; 24 June 1883 – 3 November 1956) was a major 20th-century French painter, theorist, writer, critic and poet, who along with Albert Gleizes wrote the first theoretical work on Cubism. His earliest works, from 1 ...
, '' Baigneuse, Deux nus dans un jardin exotique (Two Nudes in an Exotic Landscape)'', 1905–06
File:Albert Gleizes, 1912, Les Baigneuses, oil on canvas, 105 x 171 cm, Paris, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.jpg, Albert Gleizes
Albert Gleizes (; 8 December 1881 – 23 June 1953) was a French artist, theoretician, philosopher, a self-proclaimed founder of Cubism and an influence on the School of Paris. Albert Gleizes and Jean Metzinger wrote the first major treatise on ...
, '' Les Baigneuses (The Bathers)'', 1912, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris
File:1913. Баня.jpg, Zinaida Serebriakova
Zinaida Yevgenyevna Serebriakova (russian: Зинаида Евгеньевна Серебрякова; – 20 September 1967) was a Russian and later French painter.
Family
Zinaida Serebryakova was born on the estate of Neskuchnoye near Kh ...
, ''Banya
Banya may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Banya, Queensland, a locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia
Bulgaria
* Banya, Blagoevgrad Province, a thermal spa and mountain resort in southwest Bulgaria
* Banya, Burgas P ...
'', 1913
File:Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Das Soldatenbad, 1915, (DEP950), private collection.jpg, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (6 May 1880 – 15 June 1938) was a German expressionist painter and printmaker and one of the founders of the artists group Die Brücke or "The Bridge", a key group leading to the foundation of Expressionism in 20th-century ...
, ''The Soldier Bath'', 1915
File:Bagnanti.JPG, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, ''The bathing women'', 1919
File:Kustodiev_russian_venus.jpg, Boris Kustodiev
Boris Mikhaylovich Kustodiev (russian: Бори́с Миха́йлович Кусто́диев; – 28 May 1927) was a Russian and Soviet painter and stage designer.
Early life
Boris Kustodiev was born in Astrakhan into the family of a profe ...
, ''Russian Venus'', 1926
File:Pablo Picasso, 1922, Quatre baigneuses (Four Bathers), egg tempera on vellum, mounted on wood panel, 10.16 x 15.24 cm (4 x 6 in), Collection Paul Allen.jpg, Pablo Picasso
Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
, ''Quatre baigneuses (Four Bathers)'', 1922, Collection Paul Allen
Paul Gardner Allen (January 21, 1953 – October 15, 2018) was an American business magnate, computer programmer, researcher, investor, and philanthropist. He co-founded Microsoft Corporation with childhood friend Bill Gates in 1975, which ...
File:DEU Bad Liebenzell COA.svg, In the German spa town Bad Liebenzell the bather is part of the municipal Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...
See also
* Balneotherapy
Balneotherapy ( la, balneum "bath") is a method of treating diseases by bathing, a traditional medicine technique usually practiced at spas. Since ancient times, humans have used hot springs, public baths and thermal medicine for therapeutic e ...
* Destination spa
A destination spa or health resort is a resort centered on a spa, such as a mineral spa. Historically, many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or mineral springs; in the era before modern biochemical knowledge an ...
* Navy shower
A Navy shower (also known as a "combat shower", "military shower", "sea shower", "staggered shower", or "G.I. bath") is a method of showering that allows for significant conservation of water and energy by turning off the flow of water in the mi ...
* Spas
* Thermae
In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large imperial bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed in great numbers throughout ...
* Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater
* List of cleaning tools
References
External links
Russian baths
Photographs of Willy Puchner Willy Puchner (born 15 March 1952) is an Austrian photographer, artist, painter and author.
Life
Puchner was born and grew up in Mistelbach an der Zaya, Lower Austria, where his parents owned a photo studio. In 1967, he moved to Vienna to a ...
The Japanese bathing ritual
* ttp://pediatrics.about.com/od/newborntips/a/04_bath_baby.htm Bathing Your Baby
History of soap and bathing
A virtual exhibition about bathing in art, from Cranach to Fellini
Tales of Toronto’s first Jewish shvitz
{{Authority control
Babycare
Nudity
Sauna