Library builder

The origin of the windmill is controversial. In a manuscript on Pneumatics, Heron of Alexandria includes the description of a wheel driven by the wind and driving the pis­ton of an organ. But the authenticity of this passage has not been resolved — it could have been added during the Islamic period. In any case, […]

The hydraulic noria, sometimes called the current noria, first appeared in the period of the Roman Empire. Herein we simply call this the noria. The very first evidence is found in the description of Vitruvius (around 25 BC) as we have cited in Chapter 6. Vitruvius describes the machine very clearly, but says nothing about […]

We have seen that a political climate favorable to intellectual activity evolved under the Abbassides — and this climate coincided with important needs for hydraulic develop­ment. Scientists and often engineers made use of all the fruits of Greek and Hellenistic science in parallel with major construction projects. They produce precise mechanisms, water clocks (clepsydres) and […]

In 1031 the caliphate of Cordova breaks down, fragmenting into small kingdoms. Alphonse VI of Castilla seizes the opportunity to take Madrid in 1083, then Toledo in 1085. The Andalusians call for help from the only powerful Occidental Arab dynasty of the time, the Almoravides of Morocco. Their chief Youssef ben Tachfin puts an end […]

The Arabs came not only from North Africa, but also from Arabia, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Egypt. In 711 they conquered Spain, a country that had been occupied by the Visigoths since the fall of the Roman Empire. They brought with them all the Oriental technologies for water management: the ancient shaduf the bucket chain […]

Arab agriculture included exotic crops such as cotton, rice, and sugar cane in addition to traditional grains and fruits. Cotton was known in Mesopotamia since the time of the Assyrians, but was essentially undeveloped. These crops require considerable water, and therefore are grown in the large irrigable zones on the shores of the Khabur, the […]

Two grand libraries flourished under the Abbasids. They were motivated by the same goals as the ancient libraries of Alexandria and Pergamon: the prestige of the sovereign and the attraction to scholars from everywhere. The grand library of Baghdad, the Bayt al-hikma was developed under the reign of Haroun al-Rashid (786 — 809). It benefited […]

Byzantium, the Sassanides and the new Arab empire Water supply systems of the Byzantine cities do not measure up to those of the Romans, either in quality or in quantity. In many Byzantine cities, such as Apamea-on-Orontes or even Constantinople itself, aqueducts are abandoned in favor of cisterns, sometimes very large and fed by runoff […]

The traveler coming from Taklamakan or India enroute for the Roman or Arab worlds, whether he crosses the Kush or the high passes of Pamir that lead to Bactria, encounters the vast arid zone of the Persian plateau (or Khorassan). The plateau’s sparse and unre­liable water resources were exploited by means of several irrigated oases […]

Dams for control of river flow and for irrigation are also built on the Indian subcontinent itself. One of the oldest of the important dams in India is an earthen structure built about 150 AD on the Kaviri River in the southern region of Cola. This dam, 330 m long and 18m wide, is rebuilt […]