1840 - 1880 Foot Tub

Description:

According to 19th–century physician John Bell, pains of the head, teeth and eyes would yield to the foot bath.* Cold water and constant rubbing of the feet while in the bath helped to dispel illnesses as well. The Boston–based Dover Stamping Company's catalog of tinwares advertised foot tubs that matched toilet wares such as toilet jars, carriers, and pails.

The tubs came in extra finish, gold band, paneled (painted decoration with flowers, grape leaves, or cherries), plain, or marbleized painted oak or walnut. This brass and tin foot bath with decorative handles of bearded faces and a reeded edge was more elaborate than any of those advertised.

For more information on bathing and bathtubs in the 19th and early 20th centuries, please see the introduction to this online exhibition.

*John Bell, A Treatise on Baths, (Philadelphia: Lindsay and Blakiston, 1859): 298.

Date Made: 1840 - 1880

Maker: unknown

Location: Currently not on view

Place Made: United Kingdom: England

Used: BathingReferenced: Portable Bathtubs

Subject:

See more items in: Home and Community Life: Domestic Life, Bathtubs, Family & Social Life, Domestic Furnishings

Exhibition:

Exhibition Location:

Credit Line: Estate of Admiral DeWitt Clinton Ramsey and Juanita Ramsey

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: DL.67.899Catalog Number: 67.899Accession Number: 269842

Object Name: Tub, Foottub, foot

Physical Description: brass (overall material)tin (overall material)Measurements: overall: 10 3/4 in x 25 in x 18 in; 27.305 cm x 63.5 cm x 45.72 cm

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746ac-5ae3-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_1341882

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