(map) 
Keep an eye out and one of the many architectural features that will intrigue you on your next visit to Venice is what one might call the “anti-piddle device.”
These are structures that range from the rustic to the quite beautiful, and are built into corners of Venice’s various calle and Campi (alleys and piazze) in many locations around the city.
Once you notice them, they’re everywhere! Their function is to encourage the gentlemen to just hold on a little longer until they reach a café or arrive at home rather than quietly relieving themselves in discreet corners! If a fellow were to try to do so, well, an unfortunate splash back effect comes into play!
An elegant solution for poetic justice (and clean streets!), we do believe.
– kindly contributed by Yvonne Tabalotny. Many thanks!
So discreet butpractical
lovely! never noticed these…such a great idea.
How interesting! Thanks for sharing – I’ll pay more attention to those corners when in Venice. Ciao, bella!
How funny. Italians also put full plastic bottles of water outside their doors to discourage dogs from doing the same. But while driving on the superstrada, we always beep our horn when some fellow does this outside their car.
My parents have one in their warehouse on the ground floor and it was a old well.
Yvonne,
What a clever idea.
I would never have known what these were had it not been for you writing about them.
Kathy…a fellow “non” traveling scarf!
But in Italian, what are these things called? Bet it’s something totally appropriate.
Anyone know what they are actually called in Italian?
Oh, and for years I thought that the “corner things” were pagan symbols or to ward off the devil (at one time the devil was thought to dwell in corners), but this explanation is priceless! Now we know. ha!!! ….Thank you Yvonne for the explanation.
If I put something like this on the WC in my home, I would have to sit down, and the problem would be solved in my home.
Thanks, folks! I’ve also read that they discouraged criminals from lurking in dark corners, in the days before there was good street lighting. Wish we could travel back in time to find out more.
Evanne, I often wondered about the water bottles in doorways, thank you for explaining that!
I wonder, If these incredible monuments, or at least,some of them, will become immortalized by some city scape artist, painter, on canvas or paper, wet or dry????…
Moderation?… what moderation are You talking about? Where have You been? Back in Victorian times?
How wonderful! Leave it to the Italians. Someone from Venice should let the Mayor of New York know about this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you for another great and so interesting article.
The next time my husband and I are in Venice, we will take notice of these anti-piddle devices.
Thanks again.
Ciao,
Claudia
It says so much about humanity.
So smart a solution. Thanks for the excellent and quirky note!
[...] some odd shaped objects built into the corners of some of the streets and only by stumbling across this post in ItalianNotebook.com last July was the mystery solved. What a [...]
We have one in our neighborhood in Dorsoduro that is painted to look like a mushroom. My little boy loves it!
Jackie, I’m staying in Dorsoduro for 6 weeks, from mid-March. I’ll look for the mushroom, for sure!