Jugendstiltoilette

Öffentliche Bedürfnisanstalt am Graben

Useful Information

photography — Graben, 1870, Wien, Österreich. Public Domain.

Location:	Graben 22, 1010 Wien. (48.2090655, 16.3691848)
Open:	All year Mon-Sat 10-20, Sun 10-17. [2025]
Fee:	free. [2025]
Classification:	Sewage System
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Jugendstiltoilette, Graben 22, 1010 Wien, Tel: +43-.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

14-MÄR-1905	Toilet block put into operation.
1988	St Joseph’s fountain and toilet refurbished.

Description

Jugendstiltoilette (Art Nouveau toilet) is not really the name of this place, but "Öffentliche Bedürfnisanstalt am Graben" (Public toilet at the Graben) is probably just a description. In fact, it is just a normal public toilet, albeit from the Art Nouveau period. It is also the only one of over 50 public toilets built in Vienna in 1905 that has survived. The official designation at the time was "underground toilet facilities for people of both sexes". This one here on Graben was also the first and is a listed building. And it is still a public toilet that you can use.

The Graben, a pedestrian zone, is located in the centre of Vienna. Right next to St Peter’s Church there is a small fountain, the Josefsbrunnen, and on either side of it a staircase leading down into the underground. One is for women, the other for men. And that was the big innovation at the time, up until then there were urinals for men, but no public toilets for women. They did their business with buckets provided by maids.

Wilhelm Beetz was familiar with Berlin’s public conveniences and in 1880 offered to build and operate such facilities for the Viennese magistrate. Such new-fashioned and unseemly ideas provoked resistance, and he was naturally refused permission. It was not until 1883 that he was allowed to build the first one on Landstraßer Hauptstraße, then another in the Volksgarten. These first ones were wooden houses. He developed a series model, like the original one still preserved on Parkring, which was called a Closet-Häuschen (closed house) at the time. He also developed the oil siphon with a liquid he called urinol, the composition of which was top secret. It probably consisted of heavy mineral oil and disinfectant, and worked by floating on the urine and thus sealing in the odour. It was a working odour trap that replaced a water flush, which was extremely practical in places without a water supply. Beetz had thus invented the dry urinal.

The conditions for operating such toilets were not easy. Beetz had to pay a high deposit, rent the space, pay for the construction and operation, which included gas, water and staff, and then pay 3% of the gross income to the municipality of Vienna. At the time, use was considered cheap, at 4 kreuzers for 1st class and 2 kreuzers for 2nd class. Initially, the revenue was therefore rather low, but it soon turned out to be lucrative. By 1904, the company was already operating 58 toilets, and at times there were over 200.

Despite the necessity and advantages of public toilets, there was considerable resistance, especially in the beginning. Residents and property owners protested, and the press supported the protest. What they were actually protesting against remains unclear, after all, every house owner can be happy if passers-by go to a public toilet instead of peeing on their house. In addition to the odour nuisance, there is also a risk of damage to buildings. Nevertheless, people were against it.

The toilet was built in the Secession style. Two exits lead to two toilet facilities, for women and men, with a small lounge for the waiting woman in between. Each side has six toilet cubicles. There are also 12 piss stalls for the men. The room is tiled, the partition walls and doors are made of oak, the toilet seats are made of teak, the fittings are made of brass and the partition walls have decorative windows made of polished glass. The cubicles are extremely comfortable, with a separate washbasin, soap dispenser and towel dispenser next to the toilet. It seems a little strange nowadays that the toilet cubicles have to be locked for the visitor personally by the friendly toilet attendant with a key. The banisters are wrought iron and even the staircase is tiled right up to the ceiling.