Agricultural hydraulic works in ancient Greece

D. Koutsoyiannis, and A. N. Angelakis, Agricultural hydraulic works in ancient Greece, Encyclopedia of Water Science, Second Edition, edited by S. W. Trimble, 24–27, doi:10.13140/RG.2.1.2582.8084, CRC Press, 2007.

[doc_id=604]

[English]

Agricultural development requires hydraulic works including flood protection of agricultural areas, land reclamation, and drainage. In addition, in a Mediterranean climate, irrigation of crops is necessary to sustain agricultural production and, at the same time, water storage projects are necessary to remedy the scarcity of water resources during the irrigation period. In modern Greece, irrigation is responsible for more than 85% of the water consumption and, to provide this quantity, several large hydraulic works have been built. Similarly, in ancient times, Greeks had to develop technological means to capture, store, and convey water and simultaneously to make agricultural areas productive and protect them from flooding. Agricultural developments in Greece, traced to the Minoan and Mycenaean states, were responsible for the increase of agricultural productivity, the growth of large populations, and the economic progress that led to the creation of classical civilization. Some examples of agricultural hydraulic projects of the ancient times chronologically extending from the Mycenaean to the Hellenistic period are discussed in this article.

Full text is only available to the NTUA network due to copyright restrictions

PDF Additional material:

See also: http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.2582.8084

Our works that reference this work:

1. A. N. Angelakis, D. Koutsoyiannis, and G. Tchobanoglous, Urban wastewater and stormwater technologies in ancient Greece, Water Research, 39 (1), 210–220, doi:10.1016/j.watres.2004.08.033, 2005.
2. D. Koutsoyiannis, N. Zarkadoulas, A. N. Angelakis, and G. Tchobanoglous, Urban water management in Ancient Greece: Legacies and lessons, Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management - ASCE, 134 (1), 45–54, doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9496(2008)134:1(45), 2008.
3. D. Koutsoyiannis, N. Mamassis, A. Efstratiadis, N. Zarkadoulas, and Y. Markonis, Floods in Greece, Changes of Flood Risk in Europe, edited by Z. W. Kundzewicz, Chapter 12, 238–256, IAHS Press, Wallingford – International Association of Hydrological Sciences, 2012.
4. D. Koutsoyiannis, and A. Patrikiou, Water control in Ancient Greek cities, A History of Water: Water and Urbanization, edited by T. Tvedt and T. Oestigaard, 130–148, I.B. Tauris, London, 2014.
5. N. Mamassis, S. Moustakas, and N. Zarkadoulas, Representing the operation of ancient reclamation works at Lake Copais in Greece, Water History, doi:10.1007/s12685-015-0126-x, 2015.

Works that cite this document: View on Google Scholar or ResearchGate

Other works that reference this work (this list might be obsolete):

1. #Karamanos, A., and S. Aggelides, Participatory water management and cultural heritage in Greece, Participatory Water Saving Management and Water Cultural Heritage, Proc. 1st WASAMED Workshop, Series B, no 48, 133-141, 2004.
2. Hoys, A.M.V., The importance of water in the ancient civilizations: Greece, Tecnologia del Agua, 26(276), 92-106, 2006.
3. #Tzanakakis, V.E., N.V., Paranychianakis and A.N. Angelakis, Evolution of land treatment practice for the management of wastes, Proc. 1st IWA International Symposium on Water & Wastewater Technologies in Ancient Civilizations, Iraklio, 71-79, 2006.
4. Tzanakakis, V.E., N.V. Paranychianakis and A.N. Angelakis, Soil as a wastewater treatment system: historical development, Water Science and Technology: Water Supply, 7(1), 67-75, 2007.
5. #Sauvé, J.-M., Éditorial, L’eau et son droi, Conseil d'État, France, 2010.
6. #Voudouris, K., Diachronic evolution of water supply in the Eastern Mediterranean, Ch. 4 in Evolution of Water Supply Through the Millennia (A. N. Angelakis, L. W. Mays, D. Koutsoyiannis and N. Mamassis, eds.), 77-89, IWA Publishing, London, 2012.
7. #Angelakis, A. N., E. G. Dialynas and V. Despotakis, Evolution of water supply technologies through the centuries in Crete, Greece, Ch. 9 in Evolution of Water Supply Through the Millennia (A. N. Angelakis, L. W. Mays, D. Koutsoyiannis and N. Mamassis, eds.), 227-258, IWA Publishing, London, 2012.
8. #Mithen, S., Thirst for Water and Power in the Ancient World, 384 pp., Harvard University Press, 2012.
9. Voudouris, K. S., Y. Christodoulakos, F. Steiakakis and A. N. Angelakis, Hydrogeological characteristics of Hellenic aqueducts-like Qanats, Water, 5, 1326-1345, 2013.
10. #Angelakis, A. Ν., Evolution of Fountains through the Centuries in Crete, Hellas, IWA Regional Symposium on Water, Wastewater & Environment: Traditions & Culture (ed. by I. K. Kalavrouziotis and A. N. Angelakis), Patras, Greece, 591-604, International Water Association & Hellenic Open University, 2014.

Tagged under: Ancient science and technology