The bath's return to favor

Little by little, the practice of bathing started to reappear with the Age of Enlightenment and a new word was on everyone's lips: hygiene. The pores were no longer thought to absorb impurities but instead helped the skin to breathe. It was therefore appropriate to wash to facilitate this function. The homes of the upper middle classes were equipped with bathrooms, while the lower middle classes could order a bath—tub and hot water—to be brought to their homes. For the poor, public baths and washhouses were built.

However, the development of bathing still depended on the water supply system in the towns.