Manhole Covers - Important and less important facts
The following list presents facts about the site's covers, unique covers in their form, place, captions, and more.
Click for the list of all covers
1
The Oldest Manhole Cover
Two covers claim to the crown and both are from Rome, Italy.
One is the "Mouth of Truth" (La Bocca della Verità), which is attributed to the Roman period (the first century BC - that is, 2100 years ago)
The second was photographed on the lower floor of the Colosseum, an amphitheater that was established in the first century AC (i.e about 2000 years ago)
2
The most special-shaped lid
This London cap has a general shape of a triangle consisting of several circles. The shape of the lid reminds many of the head of a bear, especially if the image rotates 45 degrees counterclockwise, in this case, the opening holes are used as the eyes of the bear.
3
The cover with the most unnecessary text
The text on the next London lid indicates that the manhole cover is indeed a manhole cover
4
The most local cover
It is not clear what is special about the house at 10 Romema Street in Tel Aviv (Neot Afeka), which caused a special manhole cover for it
5
Globalization
Similarmanhole covers can be found in different countries (mainly in Europe).
A manhole cover from Seville, Spain was found also in Paris, France as well as in Rome, Italy
6
Between sacred and profane
On the one hand, the spiritual center of more than a billion believers, on the other a park to the banks of a river in one of the cities that a considerable part of the population is known as the "capital of sins"
The manhole cover in the Vatican in St. Peter's Square
is also located in Hayarkon Park in Tel Aviv, Israel
7
The days of the British Mandate in Israel were not over
Manhole covers from the British Mandate period or their inspiration can still be found in Israel
Cover photographed in Tel Aviv
is identical to the cover in London .
And a wider cover from London was found in Tel-Aviv
Later, the shape of the lid remained the same but the text was translated into Hebrew .
8
Remnants from the Mussolini period in Italy
To this day, it is possible to find in Italy manhole covers with the symbol of the Fascist Party (Fasces - axe blade held in a bundle of wooden rods tied with red rope)
Such covers were found in Lecce , , and in Rome ,
9
Made not in USA
Surprisingly, in the United States, which is so proud of the brand MADE IN USA, it is possible to find manhole covers that proudly bear the fact that they were manufactured elsewhere (mainly in India). This is puzzling given the large weight of the covers and shipping costs
The following caps were found in New York , , , and in Boston ,
10
Substitutions
A phenomenon discovered in two round caps surrounded by a square frame and adjacent to each other, the circular part is created by one manufacturer and the frame by another. This happens in many cases, and we would not bring it if it were not for these two caps, the manufacturer of the one lid is the manufacturer of the frame in the other and vice versa. Which suggests that perhaps the installers of the caps were simply confused
One lid and the other
11
Advertisements
Manhole covers are rarely used as advertisements for businesses. However, in the city of Giessen, Germany. A number of covers located on one of the streets advertise businesses (usually veterans) located in the area:
,
Another cover even indicates the walking time between the place of the cover and the store itself
12
Museums, collections and more
Not only this site collects and records caps, there are several museums in the world that focus on manhole covers, for example the "The Museum of Water and Sewage" in the city of Bydgoszcz in Poland
.
In Japan - which is a "paradise for manhole covers lovers", series of trading cards depicting manhole covers have even been issued, an initiative of GKP, a body that cooperates with local authorities in order to promote and publicize sewer caps (and others). In the following link, from the organization's website, you can see a number of collectible cards click to view