If you’re comfortable about traveling in the fall of 2020, now might be a good time to visit Washington, DC. Currently on view at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, are a collection of 19th century photos taken of Paris, as it evolves from a medieval city to become, what Napoleon III was after, the most modern city in the world.
The images were taken by a man who had already made his mark as one of the most famous photographers in the world, Charles Marville.
Only 5 feet 2 inches tall and holding a large-format 8-inch by 10-inch camera, he took pictures of Paris districts moments before they disappeared. He knew where entire neighborhoods were about to be torn down, so he took pictures of them as they currently looked, as they were being torn down, and then again, when all that was left was rubble.
He also captured pictures of something that was quite common in Paris and most European – and possibly American – cities in the 19th century: tossing bathroom waste into the streets.
Paris at that time was, as someone delicately put it, "a giant hole of putrefaction." There was no sewer system so the only way to remove bathroom waste, along with dish water and just about any other form of liquid waste, was to toss it out the window.
While this is not part of the showing at the National Gallery of Art, it might be worth noting that it is because of all this waste tossed into the streets that high heels were invented. In those days, women’s dresses tended to touch the floor. High heels helped women stand a few inches taller. This way, their dresses did not quite touch the street. And just in case, by wearing high heels, it also made it a bit easier to lift the long dresses up.
But getting back to our story. One of the other things that captivated photographer Marville, were the new pissoirs being installed all over Paris. This was quite an invention and something Parisians soon became enormously proud of.
All the pissoirs had a fence around them, supported by poles. There was no roof and there was one opening, on one side, to enter and exit. The fence provided privacy, covering the user from the shoulder down to the knee.
Urine traveled down to the newly built sewer below. Some used water to help flush down the urine, but most were waterless. By the 1930s, there were about 1,200 pissoirs around Paris and during the war, they took on a new role.
Unbelievably, the French Resistance found them to be one of the best meeting spots in the city and a good place to pass on messages. There was even a game invented called The Saboteur. Set in Paris during World War II, pissoirs were used as hiding places.
Sadly, the pissoirs were removed in the 1960s. They had done their job for decades, but the decision was made that they had to go. However, forms of pissoirs, but a bit more discrete, are still found in the city and even in the U.S.
Should you visit the National Gallery of Art, you will see not only the old Paris being torn down and the new Paris being built, but all the things that has made Paris one of the most beautiful cities in the world, including the charming old pissoirs.
