History of the Bidet

Much like the mystery of "dry-cleaning," the use of dry, disposable toilet paper is difficult for a layman to wrap his head around. Dry-cleaning, of course, uses specific chemicals to make your clothes clean and smell fresh. Toilet paper, on the other hand, is a bit crude and doesn't get the job done.

Stigmatized Sanitation
Thus, there is the bidet. Currently scorned in America as a useless, space-wasting plumbing novelty, it was once the preferred method for a mid-day, hygienic refresher. Conceived from the need of the French cavalry to bathe themselves quickly, the name actually means "little horse" or "pony" (because that's how you sit on it). Not long after that, more stationary models cropped up in the finest hotels and homes of Western Europe.

No one is specifically credited with the invention, but the bidet is first mentioned in print in 1710. As soon as modern plumbing was devised, the chamber pot and bidet moved out of the bedroom into a fancy new quarter known as the bathroom, where the bidet proceeded to confuse first time world travelers for centuries to come.

Modern Use and Confusion
Not intended for drinking or waste disposal, the bidet is, of course, a tool for cleaning. It's simple, fail-safe, and clearly more thorough than the popular method employed in America. Part of the reason it never took hold stateside is that American troops at the turn of the century equated the bidet with brothels and prostitutes, never considering the practical, everyday use.

Nowadays, the French have fewer bidets than the rest of Europe and India, where it is a necessity. Reduced production of the basin has resulted in various adjunct accouterments like nozzles and multi-purpose toilets.