The Last Vespasienne — Boulevard Arago, Paris
Maker unknown · Vespasienne du boulevard Arago, a screened street urinal of unrecorded date · Boulevard Arago, Paris, France
Photo: Mbzt via Wikimedia Commons, 17 September 2023 (CC BY 4.0), from the Street Art Utopia archive. Full photograph shown; resized for display.
Paris once had well over a thousand street urinals; by 2012 a writer could find only one left, a “double drainer” on Boulevard Arago. Paris Update, 2012 · French Moments Checked It stands on the pavement in front of the wall of La Santé prison, and in 2024 it was photographed still in place. Mbzt photo, 17 Sep 2023 · Gaylussac8937 photo, 28 Sep 2024 Checked
4 things to know
- Named after an emperorParisians called these urinals vespasiennes after the Roman emperor Vespasian. Paris Update says the name was suggested because he installed public latrines in Rome; Atlas Obscura links it to his tax on urine. Paris Update, 2012 · Atlas Obscura Checked
- Once there were hundredsParis Update counts about 1,200 pissoirs in 1930 and only 329 by 1966. French Moments gives the same 329 for 1966. Paris Update, 2012 · French Moments Reported
- A worn survivor in 2012David Jaggard found it still standing but worn: graffiti on one side screen, one panel replaced with raw plywood and one drain clogged. That describes his 2012 visit, not today. Paris Update, 2012 Checked
- Usable or not?French Moments said in 2017 that it was still regularly used, and Atlas Obscura said in November 2025 that you can still use it. Paris Zigzag, updated in July 2025, calls it unusable today. We lean to “still usable”: Atlas Obscura’s is the newest report, but no report gives the date of the writer’s visit. French Moments · Atlas Obscura · Paris Zigzag Conflicting
Check-in guide
- 📍
- On the pavement of Boulevard Arago, in front of the wall of La Santé prison, Paris. Mbzt photo, 17 Sep 2023 · LPLT photo, Mar 2009 Checked
- 🏷️
- A plaque was added in August 2024, according to the photographer who documented it. Atlas Obscura says it reads “la dernière vespasienne de Paris”. Gaylussac8937 plaque photo, 28 Sep 2024 · Atlas Obscura Reported
Sightings
- 2009Mar
Photographed by the prison wall · LPLT
- 201227 Mar
Still standing, worn · Paris Update
- 20174 Feb
“Only one has been kept” · French Moments
- 202317 Sep
Photographed beside the prison wall · Mbzt
- 2024Aug
Plaque installed, says the photographer · Gaylussac8937
- 202428 Sep
Photographed · Gaylussac8937
- 2025Jul
Called unusable today · Paris Zigzag
- 202521 Nov
Listed as still usable · Atlas Obscura
Every stamp links to its source. Green stamps are dated photographs of the urinal on Boulevard Arago; Gaylussac8937’s of 28 September 2024 sets the status stamp. Amber stamps are reports and records: their dates are when they were published or updated (Paris Zigzag gives only an update date), not always when the writer visited.
On the record
The Flow of History: The Mercifully Dwindling Presence of the Parisian Pissoir
“Today there’s only one left, a double drainer on Boulevard Arago, not far from Denfert Rochereau.”
La dernière vespasienne de Paris, une histoire d’urbanisme et de rencontres interdites
“Au 86 boulevard Arago, un vestige insolite résiste au temps”
At 86 Boulevard Arago, an unusual relic stands up to time.
The Last Public Urinal in Paris
“Just outside the notorious La Santé prison in Paris’s 14th arrondissement lies the city’s last public urinal.”
The facts
- Title
- Vespasienne du boulevard Arago (the Boulevard Arago urinal). Mbzt photo, 17 Sep 2023 Checked
- Maker
- Not named in any source we found. Unconfirmed
- Year
- Not established. Paris Update dates the first Paris urinal shelters to 1841; Paris Zigzag says they were set up from 1834. Neither dates this one. Paris Update, 2012 · Paris Zigzag Unconfirmed
- Place
- Boulevard Arago, Paris, on the pavement in front of the wall of La Santé prison. Mbzt photo, 17 Sep 2023 · LPLT photo, Mar 2009 · Atlas Obscura Checked
- District
- The 13th arrondissement for Mbzt’s photo description and French Moments; the 14th for LPLT, Paris Zigzag and Atlas Obscura. We lean to the 14th: three of the five sources say so, and Commons files the 2024 plaque photo under Paris 14e. Mbzt photo, 17 Sep 2023 · French Moments · LPLT photo, Mar 2009 · Paris Zigzag · Atlas Obscura · Gaylussac8937 plaque photo, 28 Sep 2024 Conflicting
- Address
- No. 75 Boulevard Arago according to Atlas Obscura; no. 86 according to Paris Zigzag. We do not lean either way: none of the dated photos shows a house number. Atlas Obscura · Paris Zigzag Conflicting
- Medium
- Bottle-green cast iron, according to Paris Zigzag. Paris Zigzag Reported
- Type
- A screened public urinal for men; Paris Update calls it a “double drainer”. Paris Update, 2012 · Paris Zigzag Checked
- Plaque
- Added in August 2024, according to the photographer’s description. Gaylussac8937 plaque photo, 28 Sep 2024 Reported
- Status
- Photographed on Boulevard Arago on 28 September 2024. Gaylussac8937 photo, 28 Sep 2024 Checked
- Our photo
- Mbzt, 17 September 2023, CC BY 4.0. Mbzt photo, 17 Sep 2023 Checked
Related
- Toilets Worth Visiting (9 Photos): the SAU collection with the last vespasienne
All sources (9)
Press and guides
- Paris Update: “The Flow of History: The Mercifully Dwindling Presence of the Parisian Pissoir”, by David Jaggard, 27 March 2012. Only one left, on Boulevard Arago; its condition on his visit; history and numbers.
- French Moments: “The Last Vespasienne in Paris”, by Pierre Guernier, published 4 February 2017, updated 16 February 2022. By the wall of La Santé; only one kept; 329 in 1966.
- Paris Zigzag: “La dernière vespasienne de Paris”, by Claire Arnous, updated 25 July 2025. 86 Boulevard Arago, 14th arrondissement; bottle-green cast iron; unusable today.
- Atlas Obscura: “The Last Public Urinal in Paris”, 21 November 2025. Beside La Santé in the 14th; 75 Boulevard Arago; plaque; still usable.
Photos
- Wikimedia Commons: LPLT, “Vespasienne Arago”, March 2009, in front of the wall of La Santé.
- Wikimedia Commons: Mbzt, “F6180 Paris 13e boulevard Arago vespasienne rwk”, 17 September 2023. CC BY 4.0. Our photo.
- Wikimedia Commons: Gaylussac8937, “Vespasienne boulevard ARAGO”, 28 September 2024.
- Wikimedia Commons: Gaylussac8937, “Cartel installé en aout 2024, vespasienne boulevard ARAGO”, 28 September 2024. The plaque, described as installed in August 2024.
Street Art Utopia
- Street Art Utopia: Toilets Worth Visiting (9 Photos), 19 October 2026. The SAU post with this photo.
Artwork File · Last checked 19 October 2026 · Certainty labels follow How We Verify Art · All Artwork Files