Why are there half moons on outhouse doors?
There was a tme when only the women used the outhouses. The men, being manly, would just pick a friendly tree. The original hole in the outhouse door was for ventilation. Shape meant nothing until the men started getting civilized. Then they would dig in a second privy and to differentiate them the mens had a star and the womens a moon. The association of women with the moon goes back into pre-history. The moon being on a 28 day cycle like women. Anyway. Stars for men, moons for womens outhouses. And since a lot more men were of the manly persuasion starred outhouses are rare.
Why do outhouse doors have a half-moon carved in them?
Wow, that is a really interesting question! I looked it up and there are a few different expanations. Some say it is for lighting, ventilation, etc. Here is what I found! The history of the quarter-moon on the door of the outhouse goes way back. Most serious historians who are students of the subject are of the opinion that the custom started in Europe in the 1500s or the 1600s. It was common practice, back then, to identify which outhouse was which by means of a circular symbol on the door of the mens' and a quarter-moon on the ladies'. The use of symbols rather than words was necessary due to the widespread illiteracy of the times. Put there for ventilation The answer lies in the lighting inside because outhouses were around before electricity. The best way to let light in was to put in a window. For privacy reasons, most outhouses were designed with the window above the line of sight. Many early outhouses contained a decorative "moon cutout" covered by glass. This allowed just enough light in to take care of business! It also allowed the real moon to shine through during the night. Bringing a lit lantern into some outhouses could have caused quite a bang so the moon won out! In reality, most people had a covered pot under the bed to go in during the night. Get's mighty cold at night going outside and the varmints are something else!
Why are cresent moons cut into outhouse doors?
To let out the odor. "The answer lies in the lighting inside because outhouses were around before electricity. The best way to let light in was to put in a window. For privacy reasons, most outhouses were designed with the window above the line of sight. Many early outhouses contained a decorative "moon cutout" covered by glass. This allowed just enough light in to take care of business! It also allowed the real moon to shine through during the night. Bringing a lit lantern into some outhouses could have caused quite a bang so the moon won out! In reality, most people had a covered pot under the bed to go in during the night. Get's mighty cold at night going outside and the varmints are something else! Here is another explanation... Probably the most recognizable symbol associated symbol with the traditional outhouse building is the familiar crescent moon carved into the privy door. Actually, the symbol is an ancient one, and was a sign for womanhood in colonial days and on the frontier. It's male counterpart, Sol, was either a star or a sun burst design also on the door. Since most male outhouses fell into disrepair rather quickly they seldom survived; while the female ones were better maintained, and were eventually used by both sexes. Although you can find outhouses still standing with the crescent moon, the original meaning for gender identification was lost by the later nineteenth century in most areas of the country.
Why is the shape of a quarter moon sawed into an outhouse door.?
it originates back around the start of the colonial times when most people couldn't read or write. mens and ladies outhouses were recognizable by the crescent moon shape for women and a sunburst shape for the men. the moon "luna" was an ancient symbol for womankind, and the sun "sol" depicted man. men never took care of their outhouses so they eventually stopped using them and the women took care of theirs, so in the end the moon shape was the only symbol put on outhouse doors.
Why did old outhouses have a moon-shaped hole on their doors?
the cutout is for ventilation and so you can see if it is occupied. in Germany the cutout is a heart shape. I don't know why.
Why do outhouse doors have half-moons on them?
Luna, the ancient crescent shaped figure, was a universal symbol for womankind. A moon, sawed into a privy door, served as the 'Ladies Room' sign of early innkeeping days. Sol, a sunburst pattern, was cut into the men's room side of the outhouse. These symbols were necessary because in Colonial times only a fraction of our population could read or write. As time passed by and frontiers were pushed further westward, the gentlemen's restrooms fell into disrepair and eventually were abandoned altogether. Accommodations for ladies were better maintained and this is why the moon symbol remains on many outhouse doors today. Its original meaning, however, was lost to the general population sometime in the mid 1800's.
In movies and cartoons, why do outhouses always have a quarter moon on the door?
There is a very interesting story behind this :) Some historians say that this custom started in Europe sometime 1500-1600. An outhouse with a circle (representing the sun) meant it was for men, a quarter moon meant it was for ladies. The sun is a symbol of masculinity and is therefore more associated to men. Why then did only the quarter moon persist in movies and cartoons? Since men can usually take a leak anywhere (in the bushes, etc) they'd often prioritize the women when it comes to outhouses. Whenever the ladies' outhouse would get broken, they'd place the quarter moon on the mens' outhouse first so that the ladies will still have an outhouse, while the men could "go rugged". Eventually, some decided not make an outhouse for men at all, and later on the quarter moon started to evolve into a symbol for outhouses in general instead of just for ladies :)
Why is a Crescent moon the symbol for an outhouse?
"The outhouse, as we know it, originated in Europe more than 500 years ago, in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The finer inns began offering "his" and "hers" outhouses. But, because most people were illiterate, symbols were used on the outhouses to show which was "his" and which was "hers". Pictures of the sun and moon were the obvious choice. From ancient times, the "sun" had been a symbol of all that was masculine and the "moon" of all that was feminine. As time went by, innkeepers reasoned that maintaining a men's outhouse was unnecessary, because they could always go out in the woods--- and those who couldn't or wouldn't, could use the women's outhouse. Men's outhouses disappeared, leaving only women's outhouses, marked with the crescent moon. "
Why is there often a crescent moon cut into the door of American outhouses?
Why is there often a crescent moon cut into the door of American outhouses?There is a tradition that states that the crescent moon is there because the moon is often associated with women (menses and so forth); and that, therefore, it was an early symbol marking women’s outhouses, with the male equivalent being a sun or star symbol. This tradition can be traced back through historical documents all the way to…1972.In reality, it seems extremely unlikely that the average frontier settler would bother to create gendered outhouses—or that the average family would have such a strong need as to build more than one to begin with.Now, this is just speculation, but I would hazard to guess: it’s clearly useful to have some kind of aperture in the door, for ventilation, to let in some light, and maybe to allow a prospective user to verbally check whether the facilities are currently occupied. On the other hand, it is advantageous for privacy reasons if you don’t make a big round or square hole that is very easy to look through. It seems quite natural to me that people would alight on some shape that involves a relatively long and thin opening, and that, if you’ve got to do that, you might as well choose a classic and decorative shape like a crescent.