Title 02b_Springs feeding the Wignacourt Aqueduct system (ppt).pdf ✅

Dr Keith Buhagiar University of Malta The springs feeding the Wignacourt Aqueduct system: Investigating their Late Medieval context
Wells • The most ancient hydrological system. • Most aptly defined as man’s attempts to obtain water from the earth, vertically below the spot where it is required. • Water is tapped through the excavation of circular; rectangular or square-shaped vertical shafts. • Since antiquity wells were generally preferred to cisterns as these provided a fresher and more abundant water supply. Cisterns • Can be compared to a tank meant for rainwater storage. • Since antiquity, cisterns were either rock- excavated or built at ground level through the use of masonry. • Above-ground cisterns required constant maintenance and were not cost-effective to operate. • Cistern technology was simple to harness. A cistern’s excavation could be undertaken without the need of outside technical expertise. Wells and Cisterns: general characteristics – an archaeological perspective
Geological Map of Malta, Sheet 1, Scale 1:25,000 (after M. H., Pedley, 1992).