A History of Engineering in Classical and Medieval TimesIt is impossible to understand the cultures and achievements of the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, and Arabs, without knowing something of their technology. Rome, for example, made advances in many areas which were subsequently lost and not regained for more than a millenium. This is a knowledgeable yet lucid account of the wonderful triumphs and the limitations of ancient and medieval engineering. This book systematically describes what is known about the evolution of irrigation works, dams, bridges, roads, building construction, water and wind power, automata, and clocks, with references to the social, geographical, and intellectual context. |
Contents
Irrigation and Water Supply | 23 |
Dams | 47 |
Bridges | 62 |
Roads | 78 |
Building Construction | 100 |
Surveying | 121 |
Waterraising Machines | 137 |
Power from Water and Wind | 158 |
Instruments | 187 |
1a Concentric Siphon | 209 |
Automata | 217 |
Clocks | 229 |
| 248 | |
| 254 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Al-Istakhri al-Jazari Al-Muqaddasi Antikythera Mechanism aqueducts Arabic arch Archimedes astrolabe astronomical automata axle Baghdad Banu Mūsà bridge Brill building built Byzantine canals candle clock centre century BC channel clepsydra construction copper Ctesibius described devices disc discharge drum Egypt Empire engineering Europe example feet float flow gear-wheel gears Greek Hellenistic Hero of Alexandria hole horizontal hydraulic Ibid Ibn Hawqal important inflow clepsydra instrument invention Iran Iraq irrigation Islam Kitāb Leiden London M.J. de Goeje masonry mechanical clock medieval method metres Middle Ages mills modern Muslim noria Norman Smith orifice Philo pipe plate probably pulley pump qanats reservoir Richard of Wallingford river roads Roman rotated saqiya Sasanid shaft siphon soldered Spain stone tank techniques tenth century timber treatise twelfth century unequal hours upper valve vertical vessel Vitruvius wall water supply water-clocks water-machinery water-raising machines water-wheels weight wheel windmill wooden