Woah!

What a sight to see

Oh, hey there!

Have you ever wondered how this kind of technology was created and impacted the lives of the Ancient
Civilizations as well as ours?

If you want to know why? What are you waiting for? Come and join me as I discover the science and
technology behind this which will later on give the characteristics of Ancient Civilization

History

Ancient civilization existed in a common group of people with a set of knowledge and values in a period
of time. These knowledge and customs are a collection of economic, social, and cultural
transformations; product of the actions of men in societies in a certain place and time.

People of the ancient civilization were concerned about transportation and navigation, communication
and record-keeping, mass production, security and protection, health, aesthetics and architecture.

Two of the most important changes which are related to the development of the ancient civilizations
were:

1. Inventing highly complex agriculture.

which resulted in producing excess of food and with the concept of dividing and organizing the work
necessary to accomplish it. This was discussed on the previous report of Group 1.

2. After 4000 BC, one of humanity’s most complex creations appeared: the city. With this, technology
cannot just be described in terms of simple tools, agricultural advances and technical processes, as cities
are technological systems in themselves. This is evident with the networks of lines that indicate the first
transport and communication systems.

Irrigation

To irrigate is to water crops by bringing in water from pipes, canals, sprinklers, or other man-made

Ancient civilizations in many parts of the world practiced irrigation. In fact, civilization would probably
not be possible without some form of irrigation. The earliest form of irrigation probably involved people
carrying buckets of water from wells or rivers to pour on their crops. As better techniques developed,
societies in Egypt and China built irrigation canals, dams, dikes, and water storage facilities. Ancient
Rome built structures called aqueducts to carry water from snowmelt in the Alps to cities and towns in
the valleys below. This water was used for drinking, washing, and irrigation.

Techniques of food production also showed many improvements over Neolithic methods, including one
outstanding innovation in the shape of systematic irrigation. The civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia
depended heavily upon the two great river systems, the Nile and the Tigris-Euphrates, which both
watered the ground with their annual floods and rejuvenated it with the rich alluvium they deposited.
The Nile flooded with regularity each summer, and the civilizations building in its valley early learned the
technique of basin irrigation, ponding back the floodwater for as long as possible after the river had
receded, so that enriched soil could bring forth a harvest before the floods of the following season. In
the Tigris-Euphrates valley the irrigation problem was more complex, because the floods were less
predictable, more fierce, and came earlier than those of the northward-flowing Nile. They also carried
more alluvium, which tended to choke irrigation channels. The task of the Sumerian irrigation engineers
was that of channeling water from the rivers during the summer months, impounding it, and distributing
it to the fields in small installments. The Sumerian system eventually broke down because it led to an
accumulation of salt in the soil, with a consequent loss of fertility. Both systems, however, depended on
a high degree of social control, requiring skill in measuring and marking out the land and an intricate
legal code to ensure justice in the distribution of precious water. Both systems, moreover, depended on
intricate engineering in building dikes and embankments, canals and aqueducts (with lengthy stretches
underground to prevent loss by evaporation), and the use of water-raising devices such as the shadoof,
a balanced beam with a counterweight on one end and a bucket to lift the water on the other.
IRRIGATION TIMELINE
6000 BC

Irrigation began at about the same time in Egypt and Mesopotamia (present day Iraq and Iran) using the
water of the flooding Nile or Tigris/Euphrates rivers. The flood waters, which occurred July through
December, were diverted to fields for 40 to 60 days. The water was then drained back into the river at
the right moment in the growing cycle.

3500 BC

Nilometer Water Level Measurement

The annual flood season along the Nile was unpredictable without records, so the Egyptians created a
flood gauge called the Nilometer. The simplest design was a vertical column submerged in the river with
marked intervals indicating the depth of the river. A second design was a flight of stairs leading into the
river. The nilometer data was then used by the ancient Egyptian priesthood who mystically predicted
when the flood would occur.

3100 BC

The first major irrigation project was created under King Menes during Egypt’s First Dynasty. He and his
successors used dams and canals (one measuring 20 km) to use the diverted flood waters of the Nile
into a new lake called lake "Moeris."

000 BC

Cement pipe

Cross-section of pipe made with cement and crushed rock by the Romans to carry water. Similar pipe
was used a century ago to carry domestic water into the San Gabriel Valley of California.

1792-1750 BC

Water Regulations

Babylonian King Hammurabi; was the first to institute water regulations within his kingdom. This early
code covered:

The distribution of water proportionally based on the acres farmed.

A farmer’s responsibilities in maintaining canals on his property.

The collective administration of the canal by all users

1700 BCIrrigation Shaduf (Shaduf / Shadouf / Shadoof)

(Shadoof) A large pole balanced on a crossbeam, a rope and bucket on one end and a heavy counter
weight at the other. By pulling the rope it lowered the bucket into a canal or river. The operator would
then raise the full bucket of water by pushing down on the counter weight. The pole could be swung
around and the bucket emptied in a field or different canal. This development enabled irrigation when a
river wasn’t in flood which meant higher ground could be used for farming.

700 BC
Noria

700-600 BC

(Egyptian Water Wheel) A wheel with buckets or clay pots along its circumference, the wheel was
turned by the current of the river. The flow filled buckets by immersion and as it rotated the upper
buckets are emptied by gravity into a trough or aqueduct. The empty buckets then returned to be
refilled. The Noria provided the ancient world with its first non-human operated lifting device.

604-562 B

Hanging Gardens of Babylon

The "Hanging Gardens of Babylon," one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, were created under
King Nebuchadnezzar in Mesopotamia. What is lost to history is how the gardens were watered
although it is known they were irrigated

550 BC

Qanat

550-331 BC (Kareze in Mesopotamia) The development of this technique allowed the use of ground
water to become the primary source for crop irrigation. A Qanat was built by first digging a vertical well
into sloping ground. Once the well was completed a tunnel was dug nearly horizontal to the lower end
of the well. The natural slope would allow well water to travel by gravity down the tunnel and emerge
some distance down slope from the well. Construction of Qanats was labor intensive and vertical
openings were placed every 20-30 meters to allow the tunnel diggers to breathe and to remove the
debris from the tunnel. Once the tunnel was completed, the area had a constant source of water.
Qanats are still in use today and at least 20,000 still operate from China to Morocco.

500 BC

Sakia

Persian Water Wheel

The first use of what is now called a pump. This device was an endless series of pots on a rope which ran
over two pulleys. The oxen-powered device powered a cogged wheel allowing the pots to enter the
water supply, fill and then be raised and emptied. The Sakia was similar to the Noria except that it was
powered by an external force rather than the flow of the river’s current.

250 BC

Tambour

Archimedes Screw

While visiting Egypt the Greek scholar Archimedes created this device which consisted of a screw inside
a hollow tube. The screw was turned and as the bottom end of the screw rotated, it scooped up water.
The water traveled up the length of the screw until it poured out the top of the tube. Today the principal
is used in transporting granular materials such as plastic granules used in injection moulding and in
moving cereal grains.

500 AD

Windmills

When the first use of a windmill occurred is unknown, although drawings of a water pumping windmill
from Persia (current day Iran) exist. This design had vertical sails made of bundles of reeds or wood
which attached to a central vertical shaft.

1800 AD

Irrigated Acreage Worldwide

Irrigated acreage worldwide reaches 19,760,000 acres. This compares with an estimated 600,000,000
acres today.

1870

Irrigation Furrow / Canal

Nebraska, USA

Hand digging an irrigation canal in Nebraska during the late 1800s.

1872

Residential Sprinkler

This patent was issued to John Gibson, of San Francisco, California, USA on July 16, 1872. It is unknown if
this sprinkler went into production.

1877

Residential Hose Nozzle

Solid Brass Nozzle

This garden hose nozzle was first patented on Oct. 16, 1877, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA. The later
patent date was on June 2, 1885.

A History of Agricultural Irrigation

The earliest form of irrigation dates back at least 8,000 years, and the technique remains an important
part of successful agricultural practices across the world. Here is a brief history of irrigation from the
earliest days until modern times.

Egypt and Mesopotamia

The earliest known systems of irrigation began in 6000 BC in Egypt and Mesopotamia. In Egypt, the Nile
flooded for a few months each year, and the waters were diverted to the fields to allow farmers to grow
crops where otherwise they would be unable to do so. In 3100 BC, a large irrigation project was built,
which involved the construction of dams and canals up to 20 kilometres in size.
However, the flooding was uncertain, and high flows could wash away dikes and flood entire villages,
whereas low flows would not provide the crops with enough water.

In Mesopotamia, the Tigris and Euphrates floodwaters were used in the same way. The Sumerians dug
canals in what are considered the first ever works of engineering. It is thought that canals could be used
for up to 1,000 years before being replaced.

Terrace Irrigation

Terrace irrigation is an ancient technique that was used all over the world, including in China and India,
but it was used especially in the Americas. The Zana Valley in Peru provides an example of this
technique, and remains of irrigation canals have been found here that date back to 4,000 BC, which are
the earliest systems in the Americas that we know of. However, the technique could have been used
even earlier than this.

Sri Lankan Irrigation

Irrigation in Sri Lanka dates back to about 300 BC during the reign of King Pandukabhaya. A very complex
system of underground canals was used, and this is the first place where artificial reservoirs for storing
water were built in an incredible feat of engineering. In fact, they were so well designed that they still
exist to this day.

North American Irrigation

Two systems of irrigation were used in North America, which are known as the Chaco and Hohokam
systems. The Hohokam system was used by the Hohokam people in Arizona, and the Chaco system was
used by the Anasazi in New Mexico.

The Hohokam people built canals in the early centuries of the first millennium, whereas the Chaco
system dates to about 900 AD. This also used canals to divert water into fields and reservoirs in the San
Juan basin.

More Irrigation from Around the World

There are many other examples of irrigation systems that were used in different parts of the world. One
that stands out is the Assyrian irrigation system. This utilised tunnels that brought water from
underground sources in hills and carried it down to lower ground, and once it was used it spread into
North Africa.

Irrigation in Mexico dates back to about 600 BC. It involved the construction of storage dams where
blocks were joined together and canal systems were developed to carefully control the water.

The Romans also used irrigation in Britain as early as 2,000 years ago. Only recently, an irrigation system
was discovered in Cambridge that may have been used for growing grapes or asparagus. The Romans
used dams and reservoirs for irrigation, and they then distributed the water via channels. Romans also
constructed grand aqueducts to transport water not just for farming but for baths and homes.

Irrigation Devices

Many devices have been invented to assist with irrigation throughout the centuries. The Shaduf was one
of the first devices, which was used in Ancient Egypt. This consisted of a large pole that was balanced on
a crossbeam. It had a bucket at one end and a counter weight on the other, and the farmer would pull
the rope to lower the bucket into a river then swing the pole around and empty the bucket in the field.

The Qanat was a device used as early as 800 BC, and is one of the oldest irrigation methods that is still
used today. It was invented in Persia (modern-day Iran), but it was also used in other areas including
North Africa, Asia and China. Qanats consisted of vertical wells in hills that were connected to sloping
tunnels. These tapped into groundwater that was directed away and used for farming. They were hard
to build, but they provided a constant source of water for many years.

The Nori was a water wheel that was used by the Romans in North Africa at about the same time as the
Qanat. The wheel had clay pots attached to it, and it was either turned by animals or by a moving
stream.

Modern Irrigation

Irrigation has come a long way since it was first invented thousands of years ago. Modern irrigation
systems are very advanced, and there are various systems in use around the world.

Surface systems are still in use today and involve the water being moved across the surface of a farming
area to wet the soil. This is one of the oldest techniques used, and it is similar to irrigation through the
flooding of rivers, which dates back thousands of years.

Localised irrigation is the name used to describe various types of irrigation methods used today. It
involves water being distributed under pressure to an exact location, and it includes drip irrigation and
sprinkler irrigation. This allows greater accuracy and control over the distribution of water, which is
essential for many types of modern-day intensive farming.

Sub-irrigation is a more advanced form of irrigation that is widely used around the world. This involves
artificially raising the level of the water table below the ground, which then moistens the soil from
below rather than applying water onto the soil from above. It is a popular technique in many places
around the world, and it is also used in greenhouses.

In-ground systems are widely used in commercial settings. This is when the irrigation system is hidden in
the ground so that the area looks cleaner and the pipes and other devices do not get in the way.

The Power of Irrigation

Irrigation demonstrates the ability of humans to control our world through the use of innovative
techniques. It has been essential for the successful growing of crops right across the world for thousands
of years, and it remains so to this day. Irrigation techniques may continue to develop, but the basic
process of artificially directing water towards agricultural land has remained a mainstay of farming for
thousands of years and has allowed humans to dominate their environment wherever they live.

USES
Although Mesopotamia had fertile soil, farming wasn’t easy there. The region received little rain. This
meant that the water levels in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers depended on how much rain fell in eastern
Asia Minor where the two rivers began. When a great amount of rain fell there, water levels got very
high. Flooding destroyed crops, killed livestock, and washed away homes. When water levels were too
low, crops dried up. Farmers knew they needed a way to control the rivers’ flow.
Controlling Water

Early farmers faced the challenges of learning how to control the flow of river water to their fields in
both rainy and dry seasons. Early settlements in Mesopotamia were located near rivers. Water was not
controlled, and flooding was a major problem. Later people built canals to protect houses from flooding
and move water to their fields.

To solve their problems, Mesopotamians used irrigation, a way of supplying water to an area of
land. To irrigate their land, they dug out large storage basins to hold water supplies. Then they dug
canals, human-made waterways,that connected these basins to a network of ditches. These ditches
brought water to the fields. To protect their fields from flooding, farmers built up the banks of the Tigris
and Euphrates. These built-up banks held back flood waters even when river levels were high.

Food Surpluses

Irrigation increased the amount of food farmers were able to grow. In fact, farmers could
produce a food surplus, or more than they needed. Farmers also used irrigation to water grazing areas
for cattle and sheep. As a result, Mesopotamians ate a variety of foods. Fish, meat, wheat, barley, and
dates were plentiful.

Because irrigation made farmers more productive, fewer people needed to farm. Some people
became free to do other jobs. As a result, new occupations developed. For the first time, people became
crafters, religious leaders, and government workers. The type of arrangement in which each worker
specializes in a particular task or job is called a division of labor.

Having people available to work on different jobs meant that society could accomplish more. Large
projects, such as constructing buildings and digging irrigation systems, required specialized workers,
managers, and organization. To complete these projects, the Mesopotamians needed structure and
rules. Structure and rules could be provided by laws and government.

PARADIGM SHIFT

Linking to Today

Irrigation is still a necessary part of farming. In fact, over 50 percent of all farmers today use
some form of irrigation for their crops. While many farmers still use canals to direct water onto their
fields, they use many other methods as well. Sprinkler irrigation and drip irrigation are two forms widely
used in the United States.