DUBLIN PISSOIRS
French style Parisian Pissoirs or men's urinals were imported and installed prior to the 1932 Eucharistic Congress, as part of a ‘clean up Dublin’ campaign. Pissoirs were located on Ormond Quay, Eden Quay and the junction of Fairview and the Malahide Road and Eden Quay. Over the door of the Pissoirs a sign indicated Gentlemen Only. Pissoirs official name was vespasiennes, named after the first century Roman emperor Vespasianus, who put a tax on urine collected from public toilets and used for tanning leather.
Pissoirs were first introduced in Paris in 1841 by Claude-Philibert Barthelot, comte de Rambuteau the Prefet of the former Départment of the Seine. Initially having a simple cylindrical shape they were also called colonnes Rambuteau. In 1877 they were replaced by multi-compartmented structures, referred to as vespasiennes. At the peak of their spread in the 1930s there were 1,230 pissoirs in Paris but by 1966 their number decreased to 329 and by 2006 only one remained on Boulevard Arago.
In Berlin the first pissoirs were erected in 1863. In order to distinguish them from those of other cities, several architectural design competitions have been organised in 1847, 1865 and 1877. One of the most successful types was an octagonal structure with seven stalls, first built in 1879. Their number increased to 142 by 1920.
The Ormond Quay Pissoir was removed sometime during the 1970s it has been reported it was sold by Dublin Corporation to a student for £10. The Ormond Quay Pissoir ended up as a Gazebo in a garden in Sandymount.
Pissoirs were first introduced in Paris in 1841 by Claude-Philibert Barthelot, comte de Rambuteau the Prefet of the former Départment of the Seine. Initially having a simple cylindrical shape they were also called colonnes Rambuteau. In 1877 they were replaced by multi-compartmented structures, referred to as vespasiennes. At the peak of their spread in the 1930s there were 1,230 pissoirs in Paris but by 1966 their number decreased to 329 and by 2006 only one remained on Boulevard Arago.
In Berlin the first pissoirs were erected in 1863. In order to distinguish them from those of other cities, several architectural design competitions have been organised in 1847, 1865 and 1877. One of the most successful types was an octagonal structure with seven stalls, first built in 1879. Their number increased to 142 by 1920.
The Ormond Quay Pissoir was removed sometime during the 1970s it has been reported it was sold by Dublin Corporation to a student for £10. The Ormond Quay Pissoir ended up as a Gazebo in a garden in Sandymount.
Pissoir on Ormond Quay
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Pissoir on Ormond Quay
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Pissoir on Eden Quay from the Wiltshire photo collection National Library of Ireland
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Pissoir on Eden Quay from the Wiltshire photo collection National Library of Ireland
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The Ormond Quay Pissoir ended up as a Gazebo in a garden in Sandymount. This is a photography taken after hurricane Charlie in 1986.
A view of the Four Courts, Dublin, from a photograph taken on Wood Quay in about 1945. A Pissoir is visible in this photo. From ‘The Capuchin Annual
Pissoir on Ormond Quay
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Pissoir on Ormond Quay
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