Laundry - Rub a Dub Scrub 1928 - Side by Side

by Mike Savad

Title

Laundry - Rub a Dub Scrub 1928 - Side by Side

Artist

Mike Savad

Medium

Photograph - Hand Colored Photo

Description

Hand colored photo from 1928
Original title: Waschraum
Photographer: Unknown
Located: Lenggstrasse 31, 8008 Zurich, Switzerland,

The Burgholzli Clinic in Zurich, established in the late 19th century, was a pioneering institution in psychiatric care, known for its association with figures like Carl Jung and Eugen Bleuler. Hygiene and sanitation were critical at this time, especially in facilities like hospital laundries, where maintaining cleanliness was essential to patient care. This particular laundry room, likely from the late 1800s, reflects those standards and the meticulous processes used to ensure sterile conditions for hospital linens.

The boiling copper on the far right, a large lidded tank, was a central feature in sanitizing hospital sheets. Heated by coal or wood, the copper allowed for linens to be boiled, effectively killing bacteria before use in hospital wards. Adjacent to the boiling copper, a large rotating drum functioned as an early extractor, spinning washed linens to remove excess water. Though it didn't dry through heat like modern dryers, the centrifugal force left linens much lighter, making it easier to complete drying on lines or in drying rooms.

Central to the room was a large soaking sink where heavily soiled items were pre-treated. Laundry staff would scrub and soak items in soapy or disinfectant solutions to loosen dirt and stains before boiling or washing. Near this sink, washboards provided a final scrub, combining soap with elbow grease to tackle stubborn spots. Together, these steps underscored the clinic's high hygiene standards, as each piece of laundry went through a rigorous process to ensure it was thoroughly cleaned.

The atmosphere of the laundry room added to its utilitarian purpose. Pale walls in shades of soft blues and cream brightened the workspace and provided a sense of cleanliness, while the grooved, anti-slip flooring, helped prevent falls in the often wet and steamy environment. Each aspect of the room contributed to a hygienic, efficient space where essential hospital linen was treated with precision, echoing the era's understanding of cleanliness as a fundamental part of health care.

Coloring notes:
I liked this image, I liked the industrial steampunk look, you don't often get to see commercial laundry facilities, usually it's a washboard and wringer. You can almost feel the pace of this, the sound of belts spinning and sheets tumbling, the scent of steam and maybe wood smoke, Its hard to say if they modernized those boilers as this image is from just before the 1930's.

You can see the various add ons they put on over the years. Raw cement in areas where brackets were attached, along with wires embedded in the wall.

I originally thought this would be a fast image to color, but the network of pipes said otherwise. Galvanized steel, copper, asbestos, valves, over and under, just a mess of them. The colors I chose for the walls were from around 1880, and I wanted a simple institution look you would find in a hospital. This hospital still stands today, it's probably more modern now.

Uploaded

November 12th, 2024

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