As pias da estação de Torrinha, Município de Torrinha, SP

A mensagem abaixo, em inglês, foi enviada pela Twyford Bathrooms em março de 2006 a Julio Cesar de Paiva, que os contatou para saber sobre a pia "descoberta" em Torrinha alguns dias antes e fotografada por ele.

"Thank you very much for sending us the pictures of the old washbasin. It was extremely interesting to see this very old washbasin. I think it may be the oldest we have seen still in use.
Terry Woolliscroft
Twyford Bathrooms, Stoke-on-Trent, ST7 2DF
Web: www.twyfordbathrooms.com"



Rare toilet catalogue comes home January 2004 - RARE TOILET CATALOGUE COMES HOME
A rare and possibly priceless antique document has been returned to its roots in The Potteries after over 100 years - lost in shed in Brazil. "Twyford's 20th Century Catalogue" of toilets, washbasins, bidets and baths made in Stoke has finally been returned home to the Twyford Bathrooms factory. It was discovered in the 1970s by a Brazilian Naval officer who had been given the task of clearing and refurbishing an old naval shipyard in Rio de Janeiro. Carlos Franca discovered the gold printed catalogue amongst the accumulated rubbish in an old shipyard building. As an engineer and an architect Carlos was the ideal candidate for refurbishing the shipyard and when he stumbled across the catalogue he instinctively knew that he had found something very important. He saved and protected it for almost forty years before contacting Twyford Bathrooms via its new website. (www.twyfordbathrooms.com) He emailed the company and told Terry Woolliscroft (Twyford's Customer Training Manager and Archivist) "Fortunately when I was inside of an old building with a lot of debris and garbage inside, I could find, with excellent condition, the following: The TWYFORDS SANITARY SPECIALTIES 20th CENTURY CATALOGUE. There is a date on it of the year 1901, written on the distributor tag. Inside the catalogue we can find the most beautiful line of sanitary products with pictures contoured with gold. In my opinion a masterpiece." And it really is a masterpiece. The catalogue was produced by Thomas William Twyford to celebrate both the birth of the new century and the birth of his new sanitary creations. The Unitas, The Deluge, The Tornado, The Planet, The Adamant and The Vale (yes, The Vale!!) are amongst the startling new toilets of the age shown in full colour and gold trim! The catalogue was known to the company but, as Woolliscroft explains, the Twyford Bathrooms Archive did not have a copy. " We knew that such a catalogue existed. It is certainly rare - it must have cost a fortune to produce - but we didn't have a copy. These beautiful documents must have all been given away. Customers clamoured for them. We suspected that they went all over the world - and now we know that at least one ended up in South America." Following the initial contacts with the company Carlos very kindly agreed to send the catalogue back home to its creators. Carlos carefully wrapped it and with the help of Ken Machin from Twyford's International Team despatched the parcel to arrive in Stoke at the beginning of 2004. "It is in reasonable condition " says Woolliscroft. "But the years have taken their toll and there is evidence of some horrible infestation. Inevitable, I suppose, after 70 years in an old damp shed! But with some TLC the catalogue will be returned to its former glory and used as both a reference work for Twyford designers and students and a talking point for the many visitors to our factory here in Alsager." Carlos is delighted that the catalogue is back home. "It seems to be that since the shipment of the catalog to Brazil a century ago , no one else had interest for it. I know that the valued catalog is much more important to you than I.