Ancient hydraulic works

Eypalinean aqueduct

Hydrosystem:Samos
Use: Urban Water Supply
Construction era: Archaic
Types: Tunnel, Aqueduct
Operation era: Archaic
Location: Greece - Samos island
References:
  • Angelakis, A. N., and D. Koutsoyiannis, Water and wastewater technologies in ancient civilizations: Prolegomena, Water Science and Technology: Water Supply, 7(1), vii-ix, 2007.

It is one of the greatest technical hydraulic works in the archaic era. It is the aqueduct of the ancient Samos town that Irodotos used to call as “double-edged trench”. It is about a tunnel of 1036 m length that starts from the north side of the Kastros Mountain that ends at the south side. It is about 55 m above the sea level and 180 m under the crown of the mountain. The real tunnel has dimensions of 1,80 * 1,80 m. In the tunnel and at a depth of 2-9 m there is a channel with the aquaduct that transported the water to the town. There were 2 phases: -the archaic with a polygonal system and the sharp-set ending -and the Romaic, sheltered with an arch It was a construction of the engineer Eupalinos and it is dated at 550 BC, during the Polykrates tyranny. For its construction slaves of Lesvos worked for 10 years. In 1882 the people from Samos tried to function the aqueduct but with n o success. After 90 years the German Archaeological Institute undertook the tunnel during 1971-73.

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Eypalinean aqueduct

Eypalinean aqueduct