HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT

OF
PLUMBING

Ancient Plumbing
6000 yrs ago, Indus River Valley, India

archaeologists unearthed copper water pipes in the palace ruins

- The palace site was excavated and found to have individual
apartments.
- Each

bedroom apparently had been provided with a bathroom

with elaborate plumbing systems for the time.

Ancient Plumbing
2,500 BC, Egypt

- Egyptians built elaborate bathrooms inside the pyramids

for their dead to use on their journey to another life.
- Egyptians also developed copper pipes used for intricate
irrigation and sewage system

Ancient Plumbing
2,400 2150 BC

Babylonia (area bet. Euphrates & Tigris Rivers)

- science of hydraulic engineering begun
- a skillfully planned & regulated network of canals were
discovered; large brick drainage sewers with manholes were
installed.

Ancient Plumbing
Babylonia
o

Hammurabi Code (first building code)

- written by Hammurabi, the sixth king of the Amorite Dynasty
of Old Babylon.

code of laws regulating business and custom (between 2400 and

2150 B.C.)

Regulations governing the construction of buildings

Ancient Plumbing
1500 BC, Island of Crete

Rainwater was utilized and cisterns were used for storage of

rainwater until it was needed for drinking, washing,
bathing and cooking uses.

1000 BC, Island of Crete

Unearthed were evidence of plumbing fixture, water supply system,

sanitary drainage system, and a heating system
Bathtub 5 Length made of hard pottery
Water Closet hard pottery equipped with seat & flushing device
Clay Drain pipe (bell & spigot type), fitted to tees & wyes

Ancient Plumbing
500 B.C. - A.D. 455: The Roman Empire.
o
o

the Romans carried sanitation to the highest degree of development.

From their language, Latin, have come such words as sanitation and
plumber, the latter being derived from
artifex plumbarius, meaning a worker in lead.
plumbum, meaning lead
Large underground sewer systems
Public & private baths
Lead and bronze water piping system
Marble fixtures w/ gold & silver fittings
Bathing pools were made of glazed tiles
Residential bathtubs were provided with hot & cold water, were made of
solid marble
Hot Water was conveyed thru pipes made of lead or bronze

Roman Baths & Bathing

The universal acceptance of bathing as a central event in daily life

belongs to the Roman world; the baths embodied the ideal Roman way
of urban life.

Latrines in Ancient Rome

Bathhouses also had large public latrines, often with marble seats over channels whose
continuous flow of water constituted the first flush toilets. A shallow water channel in front of the
seats was furnished with sponges attached to sticks for patrons to wipe themselves

Latrines in Ancient Rome

Bathhouses also had large public latrines, often with marble seats over channels whose
continuous flow of water constituted the first flush toilets. A shallow water channel in front of the
seats was furnished with sponges attached to sticks for patrons to wipe themselves

Latrines in Ancient Rome

Bathhouses also had large public latrines, often with marble seats over channels whose
continuous flow of water constituted the first flush toilets. A shallow water channel in front of the
seats was furnished with sponges attached to sticks for patrons to wipe themselves

Ancient Plumbing
After 1000 years of rule, the Roman Empire crumbled; ancient

Rome was invaded by Goths & Vandals (barbaric tribes of

northern Europe) destroying public works that resulted to
vanished sanitation.

DARK AGES came for 10 centuries

Cleanliness & domestic sanitary needs were neglected
Plumbing fixtures such as Water Closet were not used
not until the 12th century
(Water closets were developed in the 4th & 5th centuries of
Europe)

Ancient Plumbing
During the 14th century, Europe was ravaged by Bubonic Plague

killing 25 million people

Bubonic plague caused by the Gram-negative bacterium

Yersinia pestis (formerly known as Pasteurella pestis). it refers
specifically to an infection that enters through the skin and
travels through the lymphatics, as is often seen in flea-borne
infections. Bubonic plague kills about half of infected patients in
37 days without treatment

Ancient
Plumbing
18th Century

European cities had not been equipped with sanitary sewage

disposal facilities

Mortality rate exceeded birth rate

Opposition was raised when building owners were ordered to

install domestic sewage vault

Ancient
Plumbing
1455: First Recorded Use of Iron Piping.
- at an installation in Siegerland, Germany.
- German craftsmen had learned how to build fires hot enough to
melt iron and pour it into castings to make hollow pipe.

Ancient
Plumbing
.

Ancient Plumbing
19th Century

Europe started to provide public sewer systems under city

streets

Slowly, people began to use public sewer facilities for

disposal of sewage from buildings

EARLY AMERICAN SANITATION STANDARDS

1626, New York

No water supply and sewage facilities

Drinking water was carried from wells & was used sparingly;
water was purchased by the bucket from water peddlers

Outdoor earth-privies were used as toilet facilities

Used water were dumped onto the ground

Shallow wells became polluted by seepage from earth-privies

EARLY AMERICAN SANITATION STANDARDS

1675

Common Council was formed due to intolerable health conditions

Health officials were appointed to take charge of sewage & refuse

disposal

Watertight privy vaults began to be installed instead of earth

privies