Object Details
maker
unknown
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.
Location
Currently not on view
Credit Line
Estate of Admiral DeWitt Clinton Ramsey and Juanita Ramsey
date made
1840 - 1880
ID Number
DL.67.899
catalog number
67.899
accession number
269842
Object Name
Tub, Foot
tub, foot
Physical Description
brass (overall material)
tin (overall material)
twine (part: ribbon material)
Measurements
overall: 10 3/4 in x 25 in x 18 in; 27.305 cm x 63.5 cm x 45.72 cm
place made
United Kingdom: England
See more items in
Home and Community Life: Domestic Life
Bathtubs
Family & Social Life
Domestic Furnishings
Data Source
National Museum of American History
used
Bathing
referenced
Portable Bathtubs
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nmah_1341882