German maritime archaeologists believe that they have to have found a urinal used by Kaiser Wilhelm II in the wreck of the light-cruiser, Udine, lying on the bottom of the Baltic Sea. The Udine was sunk by the British in 1915.
Kaiser Willhelm’s urinal found at bottom of Baltic
At the time the significance of the urinal went unnoticed until later research revealed that the urinal was part of a special bathroom laid on for the emperor’s convenience.
“Kaiser Wilhelm was on board the ship when it was launched in Kiel on December 11, 1902, and went on its maiden voyage,” explained Mr Oser, who added the team had been surprised by the identity of the urinal’s user.
The discovery of the regal lavatory has helped focus attention on the vast array of wrecks that litter the seabed of the Baltic. Archaeologists estimate that there as many as 3,000 ships, many of them victims of fighting in either the first or second world war, lie beneath the waves.
The urinial is the most significant discovery in maritime porcelain since the the photographs of Captain Edward Smith’s bathtub in the wreck of the Titanic. Like his bathrub, Captain Smith went down with the ship.
Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing on the news of the the Kaiser’s Urinflasche.
Why am I not surprised that Alaric Bond was the alert reader who sent this your way? His nose for research is uncanny… (smiling!)
Why Linda, I trust you’re not taking the mickey!