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An exploration of the relationship between shifting power, changing behaviour and new water technologies in the Roman Near East

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Abstract

In this article, I examine the changes in water technology that occurred in the Near East during the Roman and late Roman periods (63 bc–ad 636). I argue, in particular, that the impact of Roman occupation in the Near East was not one of simple imposition of technology on the inhabitants of the Near East. This argument is defended by drawing on the analysis of the modern uptake of technologies in science and technology studies (STS) and by examining a selection of different technologies in the Roman Near East, including dams, pipelines, fountains, bathhouses and latrines. Through this exploration I demonstrate that several social, cultural and pragmatic factors can be seen to be at play and conclude that the most successful technological introductions were those that were socially, culturally and practically ‘fluid’.

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Notes

  1. In this article, ‘Near East’ is defined as south-east Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Occupied Territories. Figure 1 demonstrates the boundaries of the region when Roman rule was at its greatest extent.

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Acknowledgments

In many ways this work is the result of several years of thinking and therefore there are very many people to thank. My DPhil supervisor and examiners, Andrew Wilson, Janet DeLaine and David Mattingly, made many useful suggestions and criticisms of the original piece of work. Chris Gosden and Ian Ewart expanded my horizons in my thinking about technology more generally and exposed me to new ideas from STS and anthropology. An earlier version of this article was presented at the ‘Fluid Thinking: Exploration of Water in Society’ seminar at the Joukowski Institute, Brown University in March 2010; I am very grateful to Cecelia Feldman-Weiss for inviting me, to the Mellon Foundation for generously funding my attendance and to the audience members who asked many thought-provoking and searching questions. Thanks also to the two anonymous reviewers, who provided useful suggestions for improvements to an earlier draft. Alison Wilkins kindly prepared Figs. 1 and 2.

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    Zena Kamash

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Kamash, Z. An exploration of the relationship between shifting power, changing behaviour and new water technologies in the Roman Near East. Water Hist 4, 79–93 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12685-012-0049-8

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