Victorian Turkish Baths
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victurk.bsky.social
Victorian Turkish Baths
@victurk.bsky.social
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Malcolm Shifrin FRHistS—"Victorian Turkish Baths": 'a major act of historical recovery', 'readable', 'scholarly', 'something in it for everyone'. Profusely illustrated. worldcat.org/title/931082056. Complementary website http://www.victorianturkishbath.org
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victurk.bsky.social
Victorian Turkish Baths @victurk.bsky.social · Nov 30
See pages from the book: www.victorianturkishbath.org/EBOOK/ZBookD...
Read review extracts: www.victorianturkishbath.org/_EBOOK/5Revi...
What is a Victorian Turkish bath?
www.victorianturkishbath.org/_1INTRODUCTI...
Which baths are still open in the UK? www.victorianturkishbath.org/stillopen.htm
Book jacket shows the cooling-room of the Victorian Turkish baths at Harrogate, leading to the red curtained changing cubicles at the rear. On the right are four white sheet covered loungers; on the left are two more loungers separated by a fretwork panelled door leading to the hot rooms. The floor shows a repetitive design executed in mosaic tiles. A reproduction of one of the pages from the book's illustrated glossary. The four images (accompanied by definitions) show: a fäience corbel in the Victorian-style Turkish baths at Carlisle; a patterend encaustic tile; a drawing of a Roman Doric column; and a section of a fäience tiled wall at Nevill's New Broad Street baths in London. A reproduction of page 37 of the book, part of the chapter 'Urquhart, his committees, and their Turkish baths. The page includes two images: Mrs Butcher who "looked after Turkish Baths" in Winchester; 2 pages from a letter from Joseph Foden to John Johson about the Turkish Treaty, but with a sketch of the floor plan of his newly discovered Turkish bath in Stockport. A flowchart showing the various paths which can be followed during a Victorian Turkish bath.
victurk.bsky.social
Help! Trying to re-open my Bsky home page on my usual Firefox browser failed with the message "TypeError: r.countGraphemes is not a function" yet it continues to open perfectly here on Chrome. Anyone know what is wrong or how I get my page as normal. Loads of thanks for any help.
December 9, 2025 at 9:24 AM
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tashldn.bsky.social
Sorry to hear that Frank Gehry has died - architect of one of the most beautiful buildings I’ve ever seen, the Guggenheim museum in Bilbao…
Beautiful metal curves of the building
December 6, 2025 at 7:08 PM
victurk.bsky.social
That is certainly so. You can see a bit more about this at www.victorianturkishbath.org/_3TOPICS/Ato...
December 2, 2025 at 10:49 AM
victurk.bsky.social
#onthisday, 1 December 1879, John Plowman opened #TurkishBaths with swimming pool & fives courts in Merton Street, #Oxford. It remained open, under several owners, till 1924. The baths feature in G S Street's novel 'The Autobiography of a boy' (www.victorianturkishbath.org/_3TOPICS/Ato...) 🗃️ #C19th
Prices and opening hours from an inside page of a four page leaflet published in 1887. The Prince of Wales, later, King Edward VIII, bathed at Dolley's Turkish Baths when he was up at Magdalen College.
December 1, 2025 at 3:35 PM
victurk.bsky.social
#onthisday, 1 December 1860, Dr T Airey opened 1st #Liverpool #TurkishBaths in St Anne St. Bad review in Lpool Daily Post led to reduced prices & David Urquhart's FAC member, secularist Thos Wilcock, was appointed Manager. But—badly designed & built, the baths had closed by June 1862. +ALTs 🗃️ #C19th
Advertisement running during December in the Liverpool Daily Post, Northern Daily Times, and the Welsh paper Baner ac Amserau Cymru. Names proprietor and lists charges and opening times. Advertisement for the baths in the Liverpool Mercury (11 September 1861) after the appointment of Thomas Wilcock, who had earlier worked as Manager at the FAC baths in Leeds Road, Bradford. Shows reduced prices, opening hours, and three positive comments from bathers—including even one extracted from the bad review in the Liverpool Daily Post. Head and shoulders portrait of William Ajax (1832-1899), a Welsh convert to the #Mormon Church. He visited the baths on 13 March 1862 shortly before leaving to live in Salt Lake City. He did not enjoy his visit… …and recorded his experience in his journal which survives within a 251 page photocopy of a typescript of the original held at the University of Utah Marriott Library, Manuscripts Division. He wrote: Went about 1/2 past 7 this evening with bro. John M Kay to a Turkish-Bath, in St. Anne-street. The first room we entered into was somewhere about 20 feet long by 15 feet wide, and its temperature was rather [blank space] There were six or seven couches here resting on iron-frames, and covered with unbleached sheets of calico. We had to undress here; and, after we had secured each a piece of calico to put around our waists, we proceeded to the bath. On leaving this room, we entered into a kind of a lobby, about 1 yard in with and about 8 feet in length, in the left side of which were some cold and hot water taps. As we left this, we were in a small apartment about as long as the lobby, but about 5 feet wide. We felt it very hot in the lobby, but it was much hotter here. We sat here for a few minutes, and then went into an adjoining apartment, about 8 feet each way, or less. This was the hottest place, and it was a hot one, without any mistake. It was only divided from the other by a small partition of either boards or slabs of stones. We sat here about 15 minutes, about which time I had to leave. I would have fainted, had I remained there 2 minutes longer. I was very weak, so that an oppressive heat of the kind had much effect on me. I did not sweat but very little, which was the great cause of my fainting tendency. The others sweated very freely, and they had not the least tendency to faint. We were 5 in together, and one was coming out when we went it. I went from this into the first apartment, which, although I felt ^it exceedingly hot when I first entered it, I experienced rather cold by this time. I lay here for a few minutes and then I became better. I sweated considerably in the other apartment, but not so much as I should in such a heat… [page 54]
December 1, 2025 at 3:07 PM
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localnotail.bsky.social
Only 3 weeks until the days start getting longer again ⛅

Hang in there, SAD people ❤️
photo of someone walking a dog in a park on a winter's day, with the sun low in the sky behind bare trees in an urban setting.
December 1, 2025 at 9:50 AM
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kattekopjes.bsky.social
Thomas Rowlandson, A City Chop House (1810-1815). Collection: London Museum

#art #drawing #watercolour #19thcentury #catering #foodanddrink
Information from the museum website: A waiter is depicted carrying a tankard and a bowl towards the gentlemen diners at their table. The man with his back to the viewer, dressed in a blue coat, eagerly anticipates his meal and has his knife and fork ready. His companion looks less sure about the food coming his way. Wooden partitions between the tables.
October 22, 2025 at 6:37 PM
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womensartbluesky.bsky.social
Reading in a Landscape,1896 by Finnish painter Ada Thilen #WomensArt
Painting of a sitting white woman dressed in dark clothes reading among flowers in a birch forest
November 27, 2025 at 11:55 AM
victurk.bsky.social
#onthisday, 30 November 1868, a Dr Smith opened #TurkishBaths in #Brisbane on Albert St between Adelaide and Ann Streets. Smith soon went bust, & baths bought by Ebenezer Lethem who rebuilt them as shown in much later image. Lethem & Bird (1894 onwards) both ignored actual foundation date. 🗃️ #C19th
Coloured image of the baths as rebuilt in 1868 by Ebenezer Letham. Date of establishment opening is incorrect. Shows two-story building, flying a star and crescent flag. (From the “Views of Brisbane” supplement in “The Telegraph” of 22 December 1894 — based on a photograph taken by Paul C. Poulsen )
November 30, 2025 at 1:48 PM
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sherlockeditor.bsky.social
Arthur Conan Doyle eventually sold the story, and rights, to Ward Lock & Co. for the meagre sum of £25. Today only 11 *complete* copies are known to exist and it is considered to be 'the most expensive magazine in the World' with a copy selling at auction in 2007 for $156,000 USD.
November 21, 2025 at 4:07 PM
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felipegaonar.bsky.social
Open AI loses copyright case in Germany.

Judge Elke Schwager summarized the case saying that if you want to build something and need components, "then you purchase them and do not use the property of others."
Blow for OpenAI in Germany as court rules song lyrics used illegally
A German court ruled on Tuesday that OpenAI violated copyright on nine popular songs in a lawsuit that marked another attempt to prevent the free use of artists' content online. The Munich Regional Co...
www.yahoo.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:49 PM
victurk.bsky.social
#onthisday, 28 November 1799, Vincenz Prießnitz (Priessnitz) died aged 52. Originally a peasant farmer, he developed the water cure (hydrotherapy) & nature cure (naturopathy.
In home-town Gräfenberg (Lázne Jeseník) nr Freiwaldau (Jeseník), now in Czechia, he established a world-famous spa. 🗃️ #C19th
Portrait of Vinzenz Priessnitz Contemporary 19th century greetings postcard showing the exterior of the Prießnitz Sanatorium in Gräfenberg. The frontispiece of Captain Claridge's influential book 'Hydropathy' with six images showing four forms of treatment. A card from one of several series of humorous postcards often sold at the hydros. In this one, the betowelled patient is in a sitz bath at 6 o'clock on a winter's morning saying "This is delightful, very!!!"
November 28, 2025 at 3:58 PM
victurk.bsky.social
#onthisday, 28 November 1878, the #CamdenTown #TurkishBaths designed by Henry Hewitt Bridgman, FRIBA, opened at 11A Kentish Town Rd.
'Of all the Turkish baths I've seen
In various countries I have been,
There's none for comfort & renown
Like the Turkish bath in Camden Town'
Closed 31.3.1916 🗃️ #C19th
Longitudinal section through the baths building (Building News, 29 November 1878) Ground floor and first floor plans of the baths (Building News, 29 November 1878) Two sections of staircases within the building, and a drawing of the entrance to the baths (Building News, 29 November 1878) Outer unfolded view of coloured advertising card showing on its four panels (from right to left): 1. Details of The Camden Turkish Baths - Turco Roman Baths with its address, architect's name and names of those connected withthe baths and brief list of facilities, all over a large star and crescent design; 2. coloured drawing of the entrance to the baths; 3. coloured drawing of the spacious marble cooling-room; 4. drawn map of the area, with main railway and underground railway lines and stations. (Image courtesy Amoret Tanner)
November 28, 2025 at 2:48 PM
victurk.bsky.social
#onthisday, 28 November 1867, 13 days after George Coggan opened #TurkishBaths in Commercial Rd #SheptonMallet, Mr Rumsey opened others only 3 mins walk away in High St. Had he lost a race to open 1st, or just thought his were better? We'll never know, but his baths lasted less than 2 yrs. 🗃️ #C19th
November 28, 2025 at 1:42 PM
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thejenniwren.teamlh.social
Since Trump fired most of the National Park Service, the bears have to pick up the slack.

“Alaskan bear corrects a fallen roadside cone”

Credit @gunsnrosesgirl X

@altnps.bsky.social
March 9, 2025 at 11:09 PM
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rowdyrebel.bsky.social
Books are in fact being ‘cleaned up’ as we speak.
I only buy 2nd hand books now. 📚
October 14, 2025 at 10:13 PM
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carmen98901.bsky.social
Truth
November 17, 2025 at 2:03 AM
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architecture.bsky.social
Woof Shadow by Tachra Design in Tehran, Iran
photo: Parham Taghioff
Woof Shadow by Tachra Design in Tehran, Iran
November 28, 2025 at 10:06 AM
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drnwillburger.bsky.social
A late medieval pocket sundial from Freiburg. The portable sundial once contained a small compass in the circular recess, helping to align the sundial along the north–south axis so the correct time could be determined.

📷 @aws-almbarak.bsky.social
A small, rectangular, weathered wooden pocket sundial with finely carved concentric circles and hour markings surrounding a deep circular recess in the center, where a compass once sat, all shown against a black background.
November 28, 2025 at 8:37 AM
victurk.bsky.social
I wonder if @rustanddirt.bsky.social or anyone else knows whether Eerie ever had any 19th or early 20th century Victorian Turkish baths. I've not found any www.victorianturkishbath.org/_6DIRECTORY/... yet smaller places such as Harrisburg, Meadville, Lititz, Warren, & even Wilkes Barre had them.
https://www.victorianturkishbath.org/_6DIRECTORY/Lists/CUSA/USAEngState.htm—tho'
November 27, 2025 at 5:41 PM
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sashasimic.bsky.social
#Brussels loves comics.
November 24, 2025 at 5:21 PM
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sashasimic.bsky.social
24/11/1864: The birthday of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.
November 24, 2025 at 10:35 PM
victurk.bsky.social
#onthisday, 27 November 1893, #Batley Corpn added #TurkishBaths to its Public Baths opened earlier in the year. Hottest room could be raised to 220°F. Manager William Lister earned 24/- per week. In 1895, Ald. Colbeck told baths committee the Turkish was popular with doctors & parsons. +ALT 🗃️ #C19th
Later addition to the main Public Baths building. I'm not 100% certain this was the Turkish bath extension but it seems most likely. Can any Batley resident help confirm this, or correct it? Typographic advertisement from the Batley News (24 November 1893) giving the opening times and charges. Available for Ladies on Wednesdays after noon at the 1st class price of 1/-. Otherwise baths on Fridays and Saturdays cost 6d.
November 27, 2025 at 9:34 AM
victurk.bsky.social
And somewhere there, possibly just at the extreme left of the painting, was the celebrated #TurkishBaths, at what was then number 11, Leinster Street, where James Joyce's Leopold Bloom had a warm bath, not having time for a Turkish one. www.victorianturkishbath.org/_3TOPICS/Ato... 🗃️ #C19th
November 25, 2025 at 11:08 PM
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sashasimic.bsky.social
Me with a good friend in #Brussels.
November 24, 2025 at 5:27 PM