How did Roman Aqueducts work?

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  • Опубликовано: 1 июн 2024
  • The aqueducts were awesome manifestations of the Roman knack for practical engineering on a monumental scale. This video explores how they were constructed and used.
    I'd like to thank Woosh Pipe and Drain of New York City for sponsoring this video.
    Please consider supporting toldinstone on Patreon:
    / toldinstone
    If you liked this video, you might also enjoy my book “Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants: Frequently Asked Questions about the Ancient Greeks and Romans.”
    www.amazon.com/Naked-Statues-...
    If you're so inclined, you can follow me elsewhere on the web:
    / toldinstone
    / toldinstone
    / 20993845.garrett_ryan
    Chapters:
    0:00 Introduction
    1:37 Building an aqueduct
    3:18 Bridges, siphons, and tunnels
    4:52 Distribution networks
    6:59 Private connections
    7:48 Maintenance
    8:36 Exceptional aqueducts
    Thanks for watching!

Комментарии • 1,4 тыс.

  • @fritz404
    @fritz404 2 года назад +3079

    I love water

  • @BlastedRodent
    @BlastedRodent 2 года назад +1638

    Imagine being a barbarian from the north who travels to Rome to work as a mercenary. All your life, all you knew was a village society where bathing is done in the local lake, houses are made of wood and straw, and the goats sleep in the living room with you. Now imagine encountering this level of technology. Fountains, baths, multi-storey buildings. It must have felt like being a time traveller.

    • @charlie-obrien
      @charlie-obrien Год назад +170

      Imagine being a barbarian a few hundred years after the fall of Rome and your conditions have returned to the mud hut, goat based technology of the past?
      Now imagine life in America in a few hundred years if we allow the barbarians to rise up again?
      It's our choice. Let's hope we choose better than the Romans did.

    • @exodia_right_leg
      @exodia_right_leg Год назад +103

      @@charlie-obrien Glad to see a fellow climate change activist in the comment section

    • @pharaongaming8617
      @pharaongaming8617 Год назад +19

      It's like Afghanistan and US in modern days lol

    • @kneegerman2076
      @kneegerman2076 Год назад +4

      Just take some tribal people from African or Amazonian tribes and put them in big cities

    • @Luke-tt3dt
      @Luke-tt3dt Год назад +28

      @@pharaongaming8617 They don't call Afghanistan the 'graveyard of empires' for nothing

  • @davidpanton3192
    @davidpanton3192 2 года назад +1629

    Thanks. I've always wondered how they managed the descent without instruments. Answer: they had instruments.

    • @billrobinson198
      @billrobinson198 2 года назад +15

      Or, you can build a little and let in some water to see
      if your level is correct, then build a little more and
      let in more water to see if your level is correct.
      And repeat.

    • @johnmiller8975
      @johnmiller8975 2 года назад +57

      @@billrobinson198 or use a wooden mock up since trial and error is VERY expensive

    • @Jake007123
      @Jake007123 2 года назад +45

      What a weird idea to think they had no instruments, since our species has been using tools since before our last evolutionary step the Homo Sapiens :P

    • @davidpanton3192
      @davidpanton3192 2 года назад +14

      @@Jake007123 There's no need for rudeness.

    • @Jake007123
      @Jake007123 2 года назад +20

      @@davidpanton3192 sorry if it came out strong, wasnt my intention

  • @ccoder4953
    @ccoder4953 2 года назад +1919

    Funny thing about the lead pipes is we used lead pipes even in relatively modern times. Flint Michigan rather infamously had them. And they weren't really a problem as long as the PH and mineral content of the water was controlled properly. If the PH is right, the minerals form a stable coating over the lead so very little of the lead is even in contact with the water. But if the PH is wrong, the minerals can be stripped off and the lead will leach into the water. That's what happened in Flint Michigan - the water municipality changed water sources, mismanaged the water treatment of the new source, and stripped off the mineral coating, causing lead contamination of the water supply.

    • @cloud9935
      @cloud9935 2 года назад +94

      haha i went down to say the same thing. Pipes stay clean by getting dirty. love it

    • @TheDanEdwards
      @TheDanEdwards 2 года назад +54

      Nice try at shifting the blame (in regards to Flint Michigan). Lead is always bad. First it has to be mined (pollution on top of being toxic), melted (toxic), worked (toxic), and maintained (toxic.) The only reason we humans started using it is because it was easy.

    • @cloud9935
      @cloud9935 2 года назад +168

      @@TheDanEdwards yeah but like so is pvc and we still use that
      Actually like so many things I install on the daily are like that. It's fuckin depressing man.

    • @cretchboc
      @cretchboc 2 года назад +123

      Lead pipes exist in distribution systems in almost all modern cities towns and in abundance. The flow of the water keeps the lead from leeching. Copper and pvc and standard now but many of the old lead exist. Believe me I work in water distribution

    • @thomas316
      @thomas316 2 года назад +56

      The area I lived in England is all lead water pipes from the Victorian era. Would likely have been fine but I didn't have that many IQ points spare to begin with! 😆

  • @nimbledick9869
    @nimbledick9869 2 года назад +603

    An outflow sewer from a Roman Bath was discovered under the street in my hometown, they found some really interesting things in there. Dice, game pieces ( a full set of Ludus latrunculorum pieces I think), amulets, charms etc. funny to think of a couple of soldiers playing a game of Ludus latrunculorum in the bath and someone losing and throwing the pieces down a drain in a fit of spiteful rage.

    • @frequentlycynical642
      @frequentlycynical642 2 года назад +13

      And, where, what is your hometown? Sheesh.....

    • @nimbledick9869
      @nimbledick9869 2 года назад +73

      ​@@frequentlycynical642 York UK, Church Street Roman Sewer if you want to google it

    • @ValeriePallaoro
      @ValeriePallaoro 2 года назад +12

      @@frequentlycynical642 I know you're name befits you, but .. even I picked that it would be somewhere in England ..

    • @ValeriePallaoro
      @ValeriePallaoro 2 года назад +6

      @@nimbledick9869 Good to know. Nice bit of info. Until this video I never even thought about outflow (my bad)

    • @vardogor
      @vardogor 2 года назад +10

      @@frequentlycynical642 you seem great to be around 😭

  • @andyroo9381
    @andyroo9381 2 года назад +209

    I vacationed in Madrid, Spain a few years ago. Took a daytrip to Segovia just to see the aqueduct there. AMAZING! It was the highlight of my entire trip. It was so huge and towering. It is a stunning piece of engineering that still stands to this day. My first time to see a Roman aqueduct and I won't ever forget it. It left me speechless.

    • @whatsmyname2588
      @whatsmyname2588 2 года назад +6

      thank you for this advice :D I am going to Madrid in two weeks so now I must see it.

    • @andyroo9381
      @andyroo9381 2 года назад +8

      @@whatsmyname2588 You're so lucky! Spain is such a great country. The locals are just plain beautiful! Nice skin, great hair, handsome, pretty, well-dressed, well-mannered. I felt like I was walking amongst polite society. I also took a daytrip to Toledo and Cuenca. Cuenca turned out to be a bust because they were celebrating a holiday and the entire town just shut down! I had no idea about this holiday and it all turned out to be a wasted day for me. Toledo was quite interesting. It's everything that an ancient town should look like. Have the best time of your life!!!

    • @patrickcarpinelli3475
      @patrickcarpinelli3475 Год назад +2

      I stayed in Segovia for a MONTH it was so cool

  • @musamusashi
    @musamusashi 2 года назад +62

    Born and grown up in Rome, one of the most unique features of the 'Eternal City", is the never stopping sound of flowing water from fountains and "fontanelle" the bronze drinking posts also known as "nasone" (big nose) for its characteristic curved tap.

    • @frankgordon8829
      @frankgordon8829 Год назад +2

      I'm surprised they still use those & the water is clean enough to drink. Been to Rome several times & see those drinking faucets all over with people not only filling bottles, but actually putting their hand or even mouth to it & drinking from it.

    • @musamusashi
      @musamusashi Год назад +9

      @@frankgordon8829 the water that comes from the nasoni as well as any tap, is controlled by the municipality and comes from different sources through a network of both old and (relatively) new underground aqueducts. No above ground aqueduct is in use to my knowledge.
      Ditto for the sewage system, that has at its core the ancient cloaca maxima, that has seen two millennia of sh*t passing by.

    • @mowtow90
      @mowtow90 5 месяцев назад

      @@musamusashi I think they still use some of the old aqueducts for the decorative fountants (non drinking) like the one in the video.

    • @musamusashi
      @musamusashi 5 месяцев назад

      @@mowtow90 yes, the old system has been expanded and integrated with newer elements over the centuries, but never totally replaced.

  • @wooshpipeanddrainco.2606
    @wooshpipeanddrainco.2606 2 года назад +338

    Another great video. I imagine the effort it took to explain the idea of an aqueduct before it existed. And once fountains were mentioned, everyone got on board.

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +67

      Yes, I imagine that first sale pitch was pretty tough...
      Thanks again for sponsoring!

    • @notty1772
      @notty1772 2 года назад

      First time i See tipping on RUclips!

    • @Ass_of_Amalek
      @Ass_of_Amalek 2 года назад +3

      woosh!

    • @macbrown99
      @macbrown99 Год назад +4

      I thought the sponsorship was a joke. Guess I'm too used to every sponsorship being RAID: Shadow Legends or NordVPN. WOOSH

    • @squidinkRC
      @squidinkRC Год назад +1

      Crazy to see a local ad engrained in a RUclips video seen across the world!

  • @majorfallacy5926
    @majorfallacy5926 2 года назад +359

    i love plumbing videos being sponsored by a history interested local plumber, even though i live on the other side of the world. We still get some of our water from roman aqueducts, maybe steve should open a european aqueduct maintenance subsidiary?

    • @wonniewarrior
      @wonniewarrior 2 года назад +31

      I wonder if Steve from Whoosh will do house visits to Australia ?

    • @thomas316
      @thomas316 2 года назад +8

      Build your own aquaduct at home.
      ...to compliment the Roman baths you'll build next. 🤔

    • @johnladuke6475
      @johnladuke6475 2 года назад +22

      @@thomas316 Well I won't be building them _personally._ Obviously I'll have my slaves do that part.

    • @believeinjesus6972
      @believeinjesus6972 2 года назад

      Repent to Jesus Christ
      “Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty- he is the King of glory.”
      ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭24:10‬ ‭NIV‬‬
      J

  • @TonyBongo869
    @TonyBongo869 2 года назад +215

    I expect that there were travelling aqueduct builders who moved around the empire, going from gig to gig as a local city hired them to build their aqueduct, much like pipeline engineers (yours truly) might do today

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +120

      Military-trained engineers were in high demand, and were sometimes recruited by cities for aqueduct construction.

    • @TonyBongo869
      @TonyBongo869 2 года назад +39

      @@toldinstone I really enjoyed the book “Roman Aqueducts & Water Supply” by A. Trevor Hodge, I re-read it every few years. Like how they proved that the aqueduct work was broken out on a mile basis (a new crew every mile) because a slope error would creep into the works but would be corrected every mile.

    • @yippee8570
      @yippee8570 2 года назад +3

      @@TonyBongo869 I'm going to look that book up

    • @mm-yt8sf
      @mm-yt8sf 2 года назад +2

      i was imagining that "monorail" salesman from the simpsons :-)

    • @TonyBongo869
      @TonyBongo869 2 года назад +1

      @@mm-yt8sf not far from the truth, towns with an aqueduct and baths would have more prestige than towns without, in fact I’m working on a monorail project ( Skytrain) right now!

  • @jpotter2086
    @jpotter2086 2 года назад +31

    Most awesome sponsor ever LOL

  • @unclescipio3136
    @unclescipio3136 Год назад +5

    Everyone always oohs and aahs about the Egyptian pyramids, but Roman hydraulic engineering is really the GOAT of the ancient world.

  • @tragedician
    @tragedician 2 года назад +83

    Your research and insights are impressive. I lived in Italy for several years. Watching your videos takes me back. Grazie mille! The park of the aqueducts in Rome is a must see. Incredible what the Roman engineers accomplished 2,000 years ago. Your channel is one of the best about classical history. Please keep up the content. Bravissimo!

  • @fredyair1
    @fredyair1 2 года назад +178

    A couple of days ago I finished reading “Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants", very informative and a dig into the daily life of emperors and peasants, artisans and slaves and everyone in between. Highly recommended for all history lovers.

  • @automaticmattywhack1470
    @automaticmattywhack1470 2 года назад +524

    I've got tons of questions. I'll try to limit myself to a few. Did any springs stop flowing during Roman times rendering an aqueduct useless? Do we know if any diseases or plagues were traced to an aqueduct during ancient times? How many of the aqueducts are still fully functional and how many are partially functional?

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +481

      Yes, springs sometimes dried up; the usual solution was to drive tunnels into the surrounding hillsides to tap the aquifer at a deeper level. The Romans regarded the water of certain aqueducts - especially the Aqua Alsietina - as unhealthy, but I'm not aware of any aqueduct being associated with a specific plague. Besides a few of Rome's aqueducts, the only ones that come to mind as being functional in recent times are the examples at Segovia and Istanbul (both of which were restored in the early modern era).

    • @automaticmattywhack1470
      @automaticmattywhack1470 2 года назад +88

      @@toldinstone thanks for another fun, informative video! You're knowledge of Roman minutiae boggles my mind.

    • @degustablegerbil
      @degustablegerbil 2 года назад +64

      As someone who spent his childhood visiting my grandparents in Provence, I have to mention the Pont du Gard, an incredibly well preserved multi-tiered aqueduct

    • @yippee8570
      @yippee8570 2 года назад +49

      @@degustablegerbil I wrote an essay about that once, when I briefly studied engineering, before realising that it was the history of engineering that fascinated me, not engineering itself

    • @johnmiller8975
      @johnmiller8975 2 года назад +4

      Aqueducts did not start plagues because they did not draw from polluted water (Cholera) or stand idle (Malaria) there were sources that were not terribly healthy (Aliestina).
      here is the wikipedia article on revived roman sourced (they were all cut in the 9th century)
      en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acqua_Vergine
      I posted a link to Vitruvius as a as a stand alone post he's the true authority

  • @bobdinitto
    @bobdinitto 2 года назад +33

    Harnessing water is a fundamental pillar of human civilization. It's amazing to see how technologically sophisticated the Roman engineers were in constructing such an intricate and substantial network of aqueducts.

  • @AxR558
    @AxR558 2 года назад +22

    I always found it interesting that the words we use for pipework and those that install it (plumbing/plumber), have their roots in the Latin word for lead (plumbum) due to ancient pipework being made from lead. It's also why lead is listed as Pb on the periodic table.

  • @jpvansplunder
    @jpvansplunder 2 года назад +139

    This is actually very helpful. In some past videos I heard you talking about how some aquaducts are still in use today (or very recently). But up until this point, I was always waiting for my favourite calm voice to explain the works of it.

  • @OGdadpool
    @OGdadpool Год назад +15

    The more I learn of history, the more I wish I could travel back in time just to see some of these magnificent builds day one after completion. Or even watch their construction

  • @TheSymsky
    @TheSymsky 2 года назад +15

    I lived for three years in Montpellier, very nearby to Nimes and the triple-arched aqueduct that you showed, there's one still running through the city, emerging from a center-town hill, and illuminated with the french colors at night. It's incredibly dwarfing, beautiful, and I was always impressed that "ancient romans" were able to accomplish such technological and engineering marvels........ then I learnt that it was built in the 17-18 hundreds :(

  • @engi6297
    @engi6297 2 года назад +159

    I feel like Rome is from outer world. Being able to create such an advanced civilization thousands year earlier is just incredible.

    • @ripsaebri8082
      @ripsaebri8082 2 года назад +16

      same goes for the egyptians, amazonians, and ruzarians

    • @randomthing9712
      @randomthing9712 2 года назад +8

      If Roman feels like from outer world, then Chinese would feels like from other dimensions
      Chinese always way ahead of every civilization, that's why when everyone advance Chinese still the same, because they always been the most advanced country at that time, make them feels no need to change

    • @waterenjoyer7850
      @waterenjoyer7850 2 года назад +22

      ​@@randomthing9712 only in certain departments though

    • @randomthing9712
      @randomthing9712 2 года назад +1

      @@waterenjoyer7850 just admit it already my friend, sometimes we must let it go and face the reality 😌

    • @proxyhohol
      @proxyhohol 2 года назад +22

      @@randomthing9712 So advanced that they had to endure a century of humiliation . Lmao

  • @rexmundi3108
    @rexmundi3108 2 года назад +29

    The thing that has always impressed me is that the fountains were pressure relief valves. Nice valves. Now I have siphon tanks to consider. Amazing.

  • @rizmid
    @rizmid 2 года назад +35

    Superb presentation! Anyone who has first love for ancient Roman empire and it's history! Your channel is pure gold to indulge ourselves deep into the lives of Roman people from its prime time! A fan and an admirer from Pakistan!

  • @allenw1742
    @allenw1742 2 года назад +5

    Queens native here - loved the video and seeing the sponsor from Astoria :D

  • @larsrons7937
    @larsrons7937 2 года назад +15

    Great video, very informative.
    Rome's "real" conquest of a given region was probably not by the weapons, but the roads, and the aquaducts for the cities. True marvels for the local population.

    • @johnladuke6475
      @johnladuke6475 2 года назад +5

      Just like today, the real key is to stay there for a few years after conquest and win hearts and minds. It's hard to miss the old beloved leader and hate the new tyrant, when you eat better and have more coins to spare ever since the new tyrant took over.

    • @worldcomicsreview354
      @worldcomicsreview354 2 года назад +7

      Well yeah but APART from the roads and the aqueducts, what have they ever done for us, eh?

  • @rotsteinkatze3267
    @rotsteinkatze3267 2 года назад +28

    I always wonder how the romans already had flowing water in their homes centuries ago, but then for centuries not even kings had it.

    • @mrsupremegascon
      @mrsupremegascon 2 года назад

      Decadency is a thing sadly.

    • @garrymuir1442
      @garrymuir1442 2 года назад +11

      Fall of the Roman empire and it seemed no other cultures at the time knew how to replicate what they achieved. Or didn't have the human resource to achieve it.

    • @liamjm9278
      @liamjm9278 Год назад

      @@garrymuir1442 No one was rich enough to do and maintain them.

    • @creativeideas012
      @creativeideas012 Год назад

      @@liamjm9278 or perhaps in frequent/constant turmoil to prioritize survival over luxury

    • @liamjm9278
      @liamjm9278 Год назад

      @@creativeideas012 The turmoil after the fall is grossly overexaggerated.

  • @TheHylianBatman
    @TheHylianBatman 2 года назад +7

    That's delightful.
    Good to know the Romans considered things like repairs. It seems like a few companies even nowadays can't do that!

    • @EllieMaes-Grandad
      @EllieMaes-Grandad 2 года назад

      They had theft of water too - farmers and others 'tapping in' to the flow line.

  • @BobbyReborn
    @BobbyReborn 2 года назад +10

    I drank water from Sagalossos, in Turkey, it was the purest taste I've ever experienced, I encourage everyone to sample that someday. Great vid as always Stone!!!

  • @robbabcock_
    @robbabcock_ 2 года назад +35

    Great video! The sophisticated of Roman civil engineering was stunning! In some respects we hardly do better today. Their bridges, arches and aqueducts are amazing works of cunning and skill. Apropos of nothing I appreciate the way you choose sponsors that feel relevant to the topic at hand!

  • @starketomjochenfriedrich4941
    @starketomjochenfriedrich4941 2 года назад +39

    thank you for always giving metric measurements too :) really helps setting these things in perspective for me! i just can't believe what these people managed to do 2000 freaking years ago..
    love your videos! this is the single best content on the whole internet and you are a great lecturer ❤️

  • @iak706
    @iak706 2 года назад +15

    An aquaduct of sort was built near where i live in the early 20th century for supplying water to gold mining operations. It is really a gradual downslope ditch with inverted siphons built of wood flumes and 4' diameter steel pipe at every perpendicular valley. Since it operation ended they are being reclaimed into the wilderness. The ditch and flumes are filled with trees. I go to one sometimes and contemplate the silence of the place now as compared to what i imagine it sounded like during construction and the whoosh of water going into and out of the large steel pipe.

  • @mageofflames4372
    @mageofflames4372 2 года назад +53

    It is amazing how we could construct these things, so long ago.

    • @leavewe
      @leavewe 2 года назад +5

      are you italic?

    • @mageofflames4372
      @mageofflames4372 2 года назад +12

      @@leavewe Nope. I meant Humanity in general 🤣

    • @romainvicta117
      @romainvicta117 2 года назад +6

      @@leavewe Why is that relevant?

    • @Jake007123
      @Jake007123 2 года назад +2

      @@romainvicta117 Maybe Leavewe wanted to know if he was expressing a nationalistic feeling or a humanistic one, like he was. Mage gained a lot of appreciation from me when he clarified.

    • @drpavel_
      @drpavel_ 2 года назад +8

      @@Jake007123 *tips fedora*

  • @stellamarina4123
    @stellamarina4123 2 года назад +7

    The tour leader at the forum in Rome told us that the water coming out of the public water spouts/fountains all around the city had very good clean drinkable water brought into the city from the hills. From then on I filled up my water bottle at these spouts. Saved me lots of money.

    • @creativeideas012
      @creativeideas012 Год назад

      Should have brought some back home to get tested

  • @mtranchi
    @mtranchi 5 месяцев назад +3

    2:03 Strictly speaking, it's not true that the gradient had to be consistent. Since water finds its own level, all that is needed is that the head/source needs to be above all points on the way to the destination. I could get a bit more technical, but it's not like they needed to make the ducts laser-beam straight over 50 miles.

  • @rhobot75
    @rhobot75 2 года назад +7

    Been to Segovia- Woo hoo! But my comment real quick before watching is to ADD that I was amazed amazed and enthralled at the Alhambra, and in particular the stairs with the water funnels bringing the water into the complex. You're walking on a staircase and, there's water in where the handle, bannister, would be. Very eye opening for a young person, I loved it. I got to live in Spain, Madrid, for a year thru the UC Student Abroad Program- Anyway, onto the vid!

  • @alecjones6653
    @alecjones6653 2 года назад +17

    Perfect ad

  • @feffe4036
    @feffe4036 2 года назад +5

    Love the local commercial. Woosh.
    Better than the usual vpn or online learning courses.

  • @mussnasir8587
    @mussnasir8587 2 года назад +11

    2000 year old plumbing, roads and still working.....where did we go wrong😎

    • @leonardonetagamer
      @leonardonetagamer Год назад +1

      God decided Rome should no longer exist because of its depravity

    • @horatiohuffnagel7978
      @horatiohuffnagel7978 Год назад +1

      Greed and corruption. Basically their downfall as well.

  • @benwilliams3539
    @benwilliams3539 2 года назад +13

    Amazing. What I'd give to walk around an ancient city like Rome in its time.

  • @DivergentStyles
    @DivergentStyles 2 года назад +4

    I wish those giant thermea baths where still made with such elaborate artwork and style, I miss that somewhere deep inside me.

  • @dzulkafleysamad4980
    @dzulkafleysamad4980 2 года назад +3

    Those aquducts had tall columns, they stabilise them with arches at intermediate levels. Clever ancient structural engineers.

    • @jennyanydots2389
      @jennyanydots2389 2 года назад

      That's not what they were there for. They weren't clever either, if it were modern times they would all be registered offenders for the things they do to kids' bee whole's.

  • @jknox1543
    @jknox1543 2 года назад +32

    Did the tapping of these springs change the ecosystem of the area? I can imagine that taking that much water out of an area is going to dry that area up at least slightly

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +27

      Not usually, since the Romans tended to only gather the discharge of existing springs.

  • @joe-zj8js
    @joe-zj8js 3 месяца назад +1

    Plumber here... awesome video. Modern plumbing has saved more lives during the 20th century than doctors.

  • @barkebaat
    @barkebaat 2 года назад +1

    8:23 - Although a grumpy old git I cannot disapprove of an advertisement this well placed. Short, sweet and humorous -- that's the way to do it.

  • @barkebaat
    @barkebaat 2 года назад +10

    As someone once said (or so I'm told); up through history, plumbers have saved waaaay more lives than doctors.

    • @Misses-Hippy
      @Misses-Hippy 2 года назад

      In many places, they make more than doctors too.

    • @snp4619
      @snp4619 2 года назад +2

      @@Misses-Hippy where

    • @Potacintvervs
      @Potacintvervs 3 месяца назад

      ​@@Misses-HippySimply not true. They do make quite a lot of money, however.

  • @StefanVenus
    @StefanVenus 2 года назад +25

    Thank you for this detailed history lesson!

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +8

      Thanks for your generosity!

  • @dankestcabin7152
    @dankestcabin7152 2 года назад +3

    love that such a local comapny sponsored this video, thanks steve

  • @eve_squared
    @eve_squared 2 года назад +4

    it's amazing, I remember learning of aqueducts in school and didn't know how much of an engineering marvel it was.

  • @nolanleblanc
    @nolanleblanc 2 года назад +4

    I'm wishing I lived in Queens now! Thanks Whoosh for supporting this channel!

  • @DevinDTV
    @DevinDTV 2 года назад +18

    lmao that sponsor. how many viewers are from Queens?

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +11

      Hopefully enough to give Steve some business...

  • @Octopusmaster
    @Octopusmaster 2 года назад +4

    I was in Rome in October for the first time….went to the Pantheon 3 times….got half way home to America, and realized I forgot to go to the Trevi fountain, oops. Next time.

    • @aka99
      @aka99 2 года назад +1

      lol. over the atlantic ocean. oooops i missed the foundation.

  • @joradnhickey5296
    @joradnhickey5296 2 года назад +5

    I love the local add read ! :)

  • @wauliepalnuts6134
    @wauliepalnuts6134 2 года назад +7

    *_AS AN ENGINEER, I GREATLY APPRECIATE THIS PARTICULAR VIDEO._*

  • @bullfrommull
    @bullfrommull 2 года назад +5

    Great video. I would love to see where to water comes from and the aqueduct that carry’s the water for fountains in Rome. I have seen most of the magnificent Aqueducts from the Reman period . The Pont Du Gard in France is incredible. Traffic only stopped using it in the 1950s. A true testament to the romans engineering.

  • @davidec.4021
    @davidec.4021 2 года назад +2

    Pictures can’t do justice to the sheer scale of the Trevi fountain. It’s really a marvel to see. Thank you for this video, great as always

    • @EllieMaes-Grandad
      @EllieMaes-Grandad 2 года назад

      Odd then that it's tucked away in a back-street - perhaps very open to the public back in the day?

  • @jakethejeweler3092
    @jakethejeweler3092 Год назад +1

    I think this is the only time I've ever wanted to call a sponser.
    Thanks Steve

  • @Tranitaur
    @Tranitaur 2 года назад +27

    I loved the video, I didn't know that Rome still had aqueducts that were still functioning. It made me wonder, what other places around the world have ancient water systems still in use. Any ideas?

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +31

      Some qanats in the Middle East have been flowing for nearly three millennia.

    • @SonofSethoitae
      @SonofSethoitae Год назад +1

      The Dujiangyan irrigation system in Sichuan, China was built in the 3rd century BCE and is still in use today.

  • @jasonforster9445
    @jasonforster9445 2 года назад +3

    Thank you for helping us learn this. Your videos have become a craving of mine. I need that book. Water pressure in ancient cities is so inspirational for me.

  • @BlackMasterRoshi
    @BlackMasterRoshi 2 года назад +2

    that's funny, I was just thinking about aqueducts at work today

  • @Arbiter099
    @Arbiter099 2 года назад +2

    That has got to be the most local sponsorship I have ever seen on a YT video. Much prefer that to VPN Raid, the Educational Platform ads even if the applicabile audience is quite small.

  • @randomvintagefilm273
    @randomvintagefilm273 2 года назад +24

    All roads lead to Rome....and they built them all. They were amazing

  • @thomasmackelly7685
    @thomasmackelly7685 2 года назад +3

    incredible engineering. Love learning about ancient architecture

  • @crw02
    @crw02 2 года назад +2

    Fantastic writing! Script plays an incredibly important part in these videos, and this was expertly done (and narrated). Thank you!

  • @burnstick1380
    @burnstick1380 2 года назад +26

    Okay can we appreciate that the romans engineer a 50km long aqueduct and made the ends just differ less than 2.5cm (that's a 0.00005% gradient or less). What a feat of engineering which even today would be a challenge

    • @ChampChamp2024
      @ChampChamp2024 Год назад

      This is what a mean how have we not advanced

    • @jayquelen
      @jayquelen Год назад

      @@ChampChamp2024 what?

    • @khwistal
      @khwistal Год назад

      nono that was only the one bridge... the complete aqueduct probably differs a couple meters in height

  • @JamesThomas-pj2lx
    @JamesThomas-pj2lx 2 года назад +3

    Great work!

  • @VRChat_Degen
    @VRChat_Degen 2 года назад +2

    Love roman aquaducts, when i was a kid i had a book that showed roman building methods and the aquaducts were always amazing in their scale. Thanks for the content sir!

  • @joeyanny8018
    @joeyanny8018 2 года назад

    Interesting, educational & informative clip. Thank you. Have asked for a more detailed explanation of The Ronan Aqueduct System from other older video producers without luck. Greatly appreciate your contribution to my understanding of something that has fascinated me for decades. 🙏

  • @canis9178
    @canis9178 2 года назад +4

    Your inclusion of the dioptra and chorobates instruments answered many of my questions about ancient water distribution. Thanks for including them in this edition of your always enlightening and relaxing presentations. Is there an ancient Egyptian record of similar tools? I’d love to hear your take on the Ptolemaic period of Roman cultural overlap and it’s efforts to incorporate and extend Egyptian cultural and architectural achievements.

  • @SG-bp4lg
    @SG-bp4lg 2 года назад +31

    Do we have any idea how long it would have taken to build a section of aqueduct? Obviously it would have differed depending on terrain or if it needs to be elevated or not but do we have any numbers for specific examples?

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +24

      At least several years, and sometimes decades, to finish aqueducts. The enormous Aqua Claudia in Rome took 14 years to complete.

    • @SG-bp4lg
      @SG-bp4lg 2 года назад +5

      @@toldinstone Thanks a ton!

  • @amyfaith2350
    @amyfaith2350 2 года назад

    Just amazing. I finally have most of my questions on Aqueducts answered. Thank you!

  • @nancyM1313
    @nancyM1313 2 года назад +2

    You make it sound easy.
    Thanks for explaining.
    Have a great weekend👑

  • @mikaelc1597
    @mikaelc1597 2 года назад +6

    Sad that even with such a long history of sourcing water- we still live in a world where a number of folk struggle to get clean tap

  • @hewitc
    @hewitc 2 года назад +3

    I read the book. It was interesting and fun!

  • @evilkakepie708
    @evilkakepie708 2 года назад +2

    I love this channel so very much. What a wonderful way to relax and learn. I purchased your book. It is great.

  • @rickb3078
    @rickb3078 2 года назад +2

    220k subscribers and counting! Thank you for another great video and new insights

  • @psammiad
    @psammiad 2 года назад +6

    I had to laugh at a video about ancient Roman aqueducts being sponsored by a local plumbing company😂

  • @silhouette6158
    @silhouette6158 2 года назад +5

    Do a video on the Roman sewer system that’s still in use for who knows how long!!!

  • @anna-lisagirling7424
    @anna-lisagirling7424 2 года назад +1

    I wanted to add here that his book is fabulous and I take it with me to my too many doctors' visits and have probably sold about 4 copies so far. The catchy title is the first thing that peaks peoples' curiosity but then the fact that it covers various talking points about ancient Rome really reels 'em in! I never knew there wee so many history nerds out there! Yay!

  • @russelljohnson7004
    @russelljohnson7004 2 года назад +1

    Getting an in-script ad in a youtube video for a local business felt so surreal.

  • @JackhammerJesus
    @JackhammerJesus 2 года назад +3

    By the way after the fall of the Roman Empire the people of Cologne in Germany used the mineral deposits in the aqueducts (shown in 7:50) as a source for marble.

  • @chrisdooley6468
    @chrisdooley6468 2 года назад +4

    That’s one thing I was shocked to learn in university (actually one of many many things lol) was that the Romans were not only aware of the health issues lead caused but continued to use it where they knew they could get away with it. The intelligence and ingenuity of the Romans, especially from the 700BCE - 100CE period, is pretty amazing imho.

  • @randbarrett8706
    @randbarrett8706 2 месяца назад

    I remember on a tour of Italy around 2005 one of the things the guide pointed out was the numerous public fountains and public availability of drinking water

  • @hackresolution5074
    @hackresolution5074 2 года назад +1

    Great video. Very informative and you have a very nice voice to listen to. And thank you for not adding unnecessary music, its rare these days.

  • @snowblind5020
    @snowblind5020 2 года назад +51

    Rome was far superior then many other European empires and kingdoms for many centuries after its collapse it always sadness me seeing a loss in skill / ability to construct great features throughout the historical record

    • @highjumpstudios2384
      @highjumpstudios2384 2 года назад +5

      Yet another reason why the myth of Arayan supremacy is just a myth.

    • @thisaccountisdead168
      @thisaccountisdead168 2 года назад +12

      @Ostia Hermes was that supposed to be funny, or...?

    • @LeonRedfields
      @LeonRedfields 2 года назад +2

      End the end, Human Greed ruins all

    • @svijj_
      @svijj_ 2 года назад +16

      @@highjumpstudios2384 I've found this quote some time ago in a book called "Inside The Third Reich" by Alber Speer. Decided to save it for later:
      "Himmler had scientists undertake excavations of prehistoric sites. Hitler commented:
      Why do we call the whole world's attention to the fact that we have no past? It isn't enough that the Romans were erecting great buildings when our forefathers were still living in mud huts; now Himmler is starting to dig up these villages of mud huts and enthusing over every potsherd and stone axe he finds. All we prove by that is that we were still throwing stone hatchets and crouching around open fires when Greece and Rome had already reached the highest stage of culture. We really should do our best to keep quiet about this past. Instead Himmler makes a great fuss about it all. The present-day Romans must be having a laugh at these revelations."

    • @JonatasAdoM
      @JonatasAdoM 2 года назад +3

      Another reason why the dark ages happened.
      All this loss of knowledge.
      Imagine the Renaissance, but with access to all of what was lost.

  • @melovepeas
    @melovepeas 2 года назад +4

    stay hydrated folks

  • @R.U.1.2.
    @R.U.1.2. 2 года назад

    Thanks for the metric conversions, Greatly appreciated.

  • @susanhepburn6040
    @susanhepburn6040 2 года назад +2

    Thank you for another really interesting video - greatly appreciated!

  • @felicien93
    @felicien93 2 года назад +3

    This is amazing. This level of organization and know-how feels so close to what we do today. I wonder: how complex were irrigation systems during the middle-age? Was everything lost?

    • @faithlesshound5621
      @faithlesshound5621 2 года назад +1

      Those systems were too complex for anyone to keep the details in his head. There must have been loads of documentation, but since that was before printing was brought from China, they would have had single copies of most things. I doubt that Christian monks would have wanted to copy any of that.

    • @felicien93
      @felicien93 2 года назад +1

      @@faithlesshound5621 Wasn't printing invented in what is today modern Germany?

    • @nondescript2892
      @nondescript2892 2 года назад +1

      @@felicien93 both woodblock and movable type printing was common in China centuries before Guttenbergh...but he did invent the "modern" printing press which revolutionized the commercial process

  • @CarlosRodriguez-dd4sb
    @CarlosRodriguez-dd4sb 2 года назад +4

    You may have done this before, but I was curious about what kinds of homes common people lived in during Roman times. Specifically, I was thinking - how tall/how many floors were the buildings they lived in at the time. I've seen a proliferation of 5 over 1 building in the US and just wondered if there was any commonality with ancient times.

    • @steviesevieria1868
      @steviesevieria1868 2 года назад +1

      These wooden structures you mention are a cancer on the US urban landscape. Those that don’t burn in the next 25-50 years will be the worst form of ghetto environments.

    • @Davinyl
      @Davinyl 2 года назад +1

      Not extremely different from today- the poor lived in crowded poorly constructed apartment buildings in the city and the rich had their expensive city townhouses and summer mansions on the beach as in Pompeii. The biggest difference is that many more “middle class” people own their own house now in developed countries whereas back then someone who was between rich/poor probably rented apartments which were a little bit nicer than the common insulae.

  • @tophlovr
    @tophlovr 2 года назад

    This is absolutely fascinating. I have always wondered how they had running water back then. But with your simple explanations, diagrams, and fast pace this was a fantastic video that kept me tied to every word!

  • @Andrew-bz4yo
    @Andrew-bz4yo 2 года назад +2

    I recently started reading Fat Gladiators, and I'm greatly enjoying it. You are one of the people who make me feel like picking ancient history as my major this year was the right choice. Also, great video as always

  • @thomaswalsh4552
    @thomaswalsh4552 2 года назад +3

    6:48 isn’t that the baths of Diocletian, not Caracalla?

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 года назад +1

      Yes; I just liked the illustration!

  • @yippee8570
    @yippee8570 2 года назад +3

    Thank you for answering questions I've had for years. I've long found it absolutely amazing how they managed to achieve these feats of engineering without understanding the maths behind it!

    • @jcrc1
      @jcrc1 2 года назад +5

      I think they did understand the math though

    • @Davinyl
      @Davinyl 2 года назад +1

      They wouldn’t have been able to do it without being good at math.

  • @tragedician
    @tragedician 2 года назад

    Did a bike tour of the park of the aqueducts a couple years ago. Amazing. Love your videos!

  • @max3346
    @max3346 2 года назад

    Really thankful for the effort you put in your videos! Ordered the book :)

  • @seth_erroth249
    @seth_erroth249 2 года назад +3

    Man, I wonder how technologically far they would've gotten if Rome hadn't have fallen... 😳🤔

  • @ekszentrik
    @ekszentrik 2 года назад +6

    great vid anyway so I called Steve of Woosh to install a new garden outlet for watering a small onion patch, but he said before he can start I need to procure a licence by the emperor, so I calligraphed a scroll and sent it to the Japanese emperor, in my best Japanese learnt from countless anime and doujinshi, so he called me back and jetted over that same night for a beer to explain to me that the onion patch can be watered by rainwater alone in my particular Köppen clime and an imperial licence is not needed, which we confirmed after abducting a local TV weatherman to once and for all spit out the information whether at this current juncture of the Milankovich cycle, an onion patch at my latitude and GPS coordinate truly can be watered by rain alone, which the weatherfrog confirmed after seeing Naruhito taking out the etui with the torture implements and putting on his goggles only illuminated by arc lightning.

  • @maurjoy4104
    @maurjoy4104 2 года назад +2

    IMPRESSIVE. Period. Wow.

  • @rmatene
    @rmatene Год назад

    Excellent!! Thank you soooooo much for the metric measument conversion!

  • @FrankyBabes
    @FrankyBabes 2 года назад +19

    I won a lot of nerd cred, and zero actual appreciation, when I told my friends a few years ago that the decorations on the Trevi are the least interesting thing about it!

    • @worldcomicsreview354
      @worldcomicsreview354 2 года назад +2

      I'd think it's incredible enough that the structure of it has survived so well, "but obviously these days it has electric pumps connected to modern mains, right?" - Wrong! Amazing to think it's not just original, but has actually been working all this time!