Inland Waterways and Ancient Civilisation

Water management extends far into prehistory. Indeed, the ‘domestication of water’ may have been as important as the domestication of plants and animals for the Neolithic revolution that provided the economic and social foundations for ancient civilizations. Waterways were critical for their development, providing means of irrigation, the transport of materials and, in some cases, armies. Indeed, water management was of such importance that this emerges as a key source of power within the Ancient World, one evident from the immense symbolism that surrounds the control of water. This presentation will illustrate and explore these issues, visiting several ancients civilizations where canals and water management in general was of particular significance, including Ancient Mesopotamia, China and Mayan civilisations.

Transcript

1. Inland Waterways and Ancient Civilisation Steven Mithen Professor of Archaeology and Deputy Vice Chancellor, University of Reading, UK
2. What role did inland water management play in the rise and fall of ancient civilisation? Are there lessons from the past for the present?
3. Water management critical to 20th century rise of China and economic power The Three Gorges Dam, completed 2009
4. The Hoover Dam, 1931-36: transformed the American west
5. What was the role of inland water management in the Ancient World? A grand, but rather swift, tour
6. The Neolithic Revolution in the Levant Excavation at Neolithic WF16, Wadi Faynan,Jordan, 9,600 BC
7. Beidha: A Neolithic Village, Jordan, 7500 BC
8. Wadi Abu Tulayha, Jafr Basin, 7500 BC
9. Sha’ar Hagolan, Israel, 6300 BC
10. The well at Sha’ar Hagolan, 6300 BC. A stepped pit through gravel to reach water table at 4.26m, the upper 2.5m lined with stone slabs
11. Jawa, ‘Lost city of the Black Desert’ Bronze Age 3600 BC
12. Jawa, ‘Lost city of the Black Desert’ Bronze Age 3600 BC
14. To the earliest civilization…
15. Summerian civilisation 5000-1600 BC
16. Sumerian irrigation canals and farming system, c. 3000 BC
17. Historical analogy: The Marshes of South Iraq
18. Control gate for irrigation and flood control, Telloh, South Iraq, 2400 BC
19. A clay tablet showing a map of the fields and canals near Nippur
20. Did excessive irrigation cause salinization of the soils, loss of fertility and collapse of the civilization?
21. To the Classical and Late Antique World
22. Water management in Minoan and Mycenaean Greece
23. Knossos, Minoan Crete, 1700 – 1350 BC
24. Stone drains, terracotta pipes and a flush toilet
25. Mycenaean Greece, 1900-1150 BC Tiryns, on the Argive Plain
26. Re-directing the Manessi River
27. The Nabataean Kingdom, 300 BC – AD 106
28. Cisterns and aqueducts at Humayma
29. Petra
30. Water channel in the Petra Siq
31. Cisterns, reservoirs, dams and aqueducts at Petra
32. Excavation of the ‘market place’ in 1998 revealed a ‘Garden –Pool’ complex, a watery paradise in the middle of Petra
33. The pavillion and garden at Petra
34. The Roman World, 400 BC – AD 800
35. The aqueducts of Rome, eleven aqueducts built between 312 BC and Ad 230
36. The Aqua Claudia in the centre of Rome showing the double tier of channels
37. Arches carrying the Aqua Claudia in the Parco degli acquedotti, Rome
38. The Baths of Caracalla
39. Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire
40. The Bozdoğan or Aqueduct of Valens, AD 370
41. The 551 Km aqueduct from Vize to Constantinople
42. The Kurşunlugerme
43. The Basilica Cistern
44. To Ancient China …
45. The Qin Dynasty 221-202 BC
46. The Dujiangyan irrigation systems c. 270 BC
47. Seasonal changes in water flow at Dujiangyan
48. Li Bing, immortalised in the Erwang Temple
49. Baskets of pebbles and iron beams as used by Li Bing
50. Dujiangyan Irrigation of the Chengdu Plain, based on a Qing Dynasty depiction
51. The development of water power and water transport during the Han, Sui and Tang Dynasties , 202 BC – AD 907
52. The Grand Canal Completed in the 7th Century AD during the Sui Dynasty At 1760 Km this is the longest artificial waterway ever made
53. To the Khmer Civilization AD 802-1327
54. Angkor The ‘Hydraulic City’ The largest pre- industrial, low-density urban complex
55. Angkor Wat, constructed by Suryavarman II AD 1113-50
56. Ta Prohm Banteay Srei
57. Srah Srang, or The Royal Bath
58. The West Baray
59. Were the barays for irrigation, flood control or part of the creation of the Hindu universe on earth?
60. To the New World civilizations
61. Phoenix, Arizona
62. Below Phoenix: Hohokam canals AD 1-1450
63. Hohokam canal, in Park of the Canals, Mesa, Phoenix
64. Hohokam irrigation system
65. Reconstructed Hohokam houses at Pueblo Grande
66. The raised mound at Pueblo Grande
67. The ‘Big House’ at Casa Grade
68. The Incas AD 1200-1572
69. Pachacuti Pisaq
70. Tipón : An Inca Water Garden AD 1400
71. Tipón : The aqueduct from Rio Pukara
72. Tipón : Ornamental spring at third terrace
73. Tipón Water channel, cascades, staircase and ‘flying steps’
74. Machu Picchu
75. Aqueduct bringing water 749 metres from a spring on the eastern side of Machu Picchu to the citadel
76. Fountain 10 at Machu Picchu
77. The central plaza as a great drain
78. Inland Waterways and Ancient Civilization • The ‘domestication’ of water was as important as the domestication of plants and animals for the Neolithic Revolution • Water management was critical in the rise of Ancient Civilizations o For irrigation to create agricultural surpluses o Canals for the movement of goods, people and armies o For status, ideology and religion • Some of the greatest feats of Ancient Civilizations are found in their engineering for water management • Controlling water was a source of power for the kings, emperors and elites • Reconstructing ancient water systems provide means of modern day economic growth by learning lessons from the past and enhancing