History of Shower Box

For many of us, taking a daily shower is part of our everyday routine. But showers haven’t always been so simple – We take a trip through time and look back at the history of the shower – from waterfall showers in the Ancient World to the first modern shower – invented in 1767 by William Fettham – to the advent of the modern electric or digital showers that we use today.

We begin our journey with our ancestors who lived in caves and huts that they built from natural resources. All those centuries ago, the only powerful source of water was waterfalls. Ancient tribal people would simply stand under the falling water to clean themselves. But the history of designed and unnatural showers is not the same as above and starts in ancient Egypt:
The Ancient Egyptians, as society advanced, ceramic jugs were invented and the Egyptians were able to replicate the effects of a waterfall by pouring water over themselves. This was the first manmade way of showering. The Greeks adopted this idea and improved upon it by developing the first drainage systems. They invented a system that allowed water to be transported in and out of the rooms via lead piping. And it wasn’t just the wealthy few benefiting from this; they also built large, communal areas where everyone could wash together.

According to historical documents, the Romans may not have designed the first sewer system, but they were pioneers in both plumbing and public health. For example, they created sewage systems for disposing of the wastewater – by 315 AD, Rome had 144 public toilets.
As a group of people, they had high standards of cleanliness. The Romans constructed large bathhouses, not only in their native land but across Europe.

The first ‘modern’ shower, fast forward to 1767 when the first patent for a shower was granted to William Feetham, a stove maker from Ludgate Hill in London. These early modern-day showers were powered by a hand pump and used less water than baths.