Image: Marktplaats.

The lavet is a typically Dutch invention that was mainly used in social housing in the 1950s and 1960s. It was produced up to 1975, with a total production of about 1 million. The lavet is somewhere between a sink and a bathtub. It consists of a plateau with a raised edge, in which on one side is a 40 cm deep tub with a diameter of almost 60 cm. Unique to the design is the multi-functionality. The lavet fulfilled the functions of a bathroom and laundry room but required ​​only one square meter of space.

The tub was very suitable for washing (several) children, but adults could also take a hip bath with some dexterity. There was even the possibility to take a shower standing in the tub. The lavet was also great for hand washing clothes. The manufacturer of the washbasin marketed a washing machine and accompanying centrifuge that fit in the washbasin. The tub was also practical for gardeners: they could rinse large quantities of vegetables in it before preserving them.

Image: Marktplaats.

Image: Ralph van der Kamp. Source: Joostdevree.nl.

Image: Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed.

Thanks to Melle Smets.

Sources: 

• Het lavet, Joostdevree.nl
• Het Lavet, Wikipedia NL

Update:

Reader Ramino sends us some information about a similar artifact in Argentina. “The MASI (Mueble Artefacto Sanitario Integral) was developed by the Argentinian research institute CEVE (Centro Experimental de la Vivienda Económica, a joint between an NGO and the  national research council). It is (was?) made of plastic, to make both production and installation simpler and cheaper, as it is designed for cheap social housing. It seems there are two versions (one wider, and  one more compact), which integrate sink, toilet and shower, and the main idea is to reuse the sink’s greywater to fill the toilet’s deposit. Unfortunately, I don’t think it has had a very big adoption.” See:

• http://www.ceve.org.ar/componentes-1.php
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6CH7rDBjcY

“For most of the history of our species, in most parts of the world, bathing has been a collective act… But communal bathing is rare in the modern world. While there are places where it remains an important part of social life – in Japan, Sweden and Turkey, for example – for those living in major cities, particularly in the Anglosphere, the practice is virtually extinct. The vast majority of people in London, New York and Sydney have become used to washing alone, at home, in plexi-glass containers – showering as a functional action, to clean one’s own private body in the fastest and most efficient way possible.”

“The bathhouses of the future, by reinventing the historical social functions of their ancient originals and combining their most attractive aspects to build a new model, would compensate for the erosion of public spaces elsewhere… Politically, too, they could be part of a wider effort to construct sustainable economic models. Last year at the UN climate change conference in Paris, countries agreed to phase out gas boilers and replace them with carbon-friendly alternatives. Although boilers do not pollute to the same degree as cars, aeroplanes or cattle farms, our individual commitments to private washing is part of an unsustainable burden on the planet. Solar-powered public baths could lighten the load.”

Read more: “Why we need to bring back the art of communal bathing“.