Wooden Commode Chair with White Porcelain Bowl
Credit LineGift of Mr. Lloyd Blinn, 1988.
Object number1988.023.001
Label TextIn the days before indoor plumbing, a close stool like this was a useful piece of bedroom furniture. At night, householders used it instead of going to the backyard privy. In the morning, they removed the porcelain pot, emptied its contents in the privy, and cleaned it for the next night’s use. Did you know that the name of this device over time came to apply to one of the things that ended up in it? Yes, this is why feces are called “stools.”
NameChair, Commode
c. 1940s
