water Article Roman Aqueducts in Crete, Greece: Learning from the Past Andreas N. Angelakis 1,2 , Yannis Christodoulakos 3 and Vasileios A. Tzanakakis 4,* 1 Hellenic Agricultural Organization “Demeter” (HAO-”Demeter”), Institute of Subtropical Plants, Olive Tree and Viticulture, 71300 Heraklion, Greece;
[email protected] 2 Union of Water Supply and Sewerage Enterprises, 41222 Larissa, Greece 3 Architect, Honorary Director of the Archaeological Work and Studies, Department of the Ephorate of Antiquities of CHQ, 73300 Chania, Greece;
[email protected] 4 Department of Agriculture, School of Agricultural Science, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71300 Heraklion, Greece * Correspondence:
[email protected] Abstract: The Romans were well aware of the strategic importance of Crete and tried, by any means possible, its final conquest. The island was under Roman rule over four centuries (ca 67 BC–330 AD). Under Roman rule, Crete witnessed a growth of its population and prosperity and an increase in its connectivity with other parts of the Empire. In addition, Gortys, Chersonisos, Elyros, Lyttos, Kissamos and other cities flourished under their rule. At that prosperous time, several luxurious infrastructures, such as hydraulic works, were developed. In this paper, we wish to examine the principles and the technical characteristics of major aqueducts built at that time. They constructed impressive hydro-works, such as aqueducts, by using the knowledge gained from earlier Greek civilizations in Minoan and Classical and Hellenistic times. However, they mainly increased the scale of applied technologies to support the increased population water demand. Water is a common need of humankind and several ancient civilizations developed simple but practical techniques, such as the aqueduct, especially during Roman times.