Freestanding cast iron bathtub

This enamel-coated, cast iron bathtub is a typical example of a sanitary device produced in the first half of the 20th c. Bathtubs of cast-iron, i.e. a high carbon alloy of iron and carbon, and of ceramic gradually replaced the wooden and sheet-metal tubs used for bathing. That resulted from the development of modern water supply and sewerage networks in many cities. The process of enamel coating of iron and steel, which involves covering a surface with a powder and baking it at high temperatures until a uniform layer of glaze forms, was developed by David Dunbar Buick around 1887. Today’s bathtubs are usually made of fibreglass or acrylic, which allows complex shapes to be formed that would be difficult to create using different materials. Manufacturer: Producer unknown, first half of 20th c. Inw. No.: MIM1784/IV-91 Model prepared on the basis of photogrammetric measurements. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA