S. Kerschbaum's monograph examines long-distance aqueducts in Asia Minor in the imperial period. It responds to current trends that stress the manifold importance of water, not only for its lifesaving significance, but also for its power to convey messages as part of urban environments.
The introduction presents the methodology, starting with a critical discussion of Wittfogel's model (‘Oriental Despotism’) which attempted to explain the connection between political power and control of resources. K. goes on to define the analytically important concepts of ‘innovation’ and ‘cultural code’. She understands innovation as a multidimensional and socially embedded process that makes something new available to a wider society. The bases of her research are the ancient Greek and Latin literary sources, legal texts and decrees, depictions of aqueducts on coins, archaeological remains and inscriptions.
Ch. 2 examines the technical details, materials and construction technology of the long-distance aqueducts, their operation and their terminal points. Particular attention is paid to differences between Greek and Roman terminology and whether they can reveal technology transfer and technical progress and whether they can be placed in chronological sequence.
Ch. 3 surveys pre-Roman strategies in water supply, revealing that the Hellenistic kings only showed interest in infrastructural support for the cities they founded after Asia Minor entered into a multifaceted process of technological, political and cultural exchange with Rome. Ch. 4 examines the transition from the Hellenistic to Roman systems of water transfer, focusing on administrative and legal texts. There is close attention to the officials engaged with the administration of water usage in the Hellenistic and Roman periods, particularly the Epimeletes and the Curatores Aquarum.
Ch. 5 is dedicated to the role of the three major actors in the Roman period: the emperor, benefactors and cities. K.'s analysis highlights the poleis of Asia Minor as the key agents, financing and monitoring the transfer and distribution of water. Ch. 6 reframes the spread of long-distance aqueducts as part of a cultural process that not only reflects Roman technological expertise but also was an expression of a city's identity. Ch. 7 extends the analysis to the perception of ownership and space, showing that long-distance pipelines served as both impressive delineators of urban territory and symbols of urban power.
The final chapter turns to the Roman army, arguing that troops campaigning and stationing in the Roman East and the Balkan/Danubian provinces played a key role in the dissemination of Roman technology and culture.
The bibliography is extensive and up to date, though it might have included studies of the Greek lands (e.g. A. Kaiafa, Συστήματα ύδρευσης και αποχέτευσης κατά την ελληνιστική και ρωμαϊκή περίοδο στη Μακεδονία (2008)) and some recent studies of water culture (e.g. D. K. Rogers, Water Culture in Roman Society (2018)). The absence of illustrations is not a significant problem.
The volume is a welcome addition to ancient water studies. It poses significant questions about how and why the technological novelty of long-distance aqueducts diffused across a culturally and morphologically heterogeneous region, and which actors were most important to this process. It also expands our understanding of the ideological value of water. We knew that water was used to support and legitimise the Roman Empire, and to promote the ambitions of the wealthy benefactors. But K. shows that it was in fact the cities that were the key decision makers for the diffusion of long-distance water pipelines. Although the book focuses on the provinces of Asia Minor, its conclusions apply more widely across the Mediterranean basin — if not the entire Empire.
To conclude, this study sheds light on the mechanisms and characteristics of the introduction and diffusion of long-distance pipelines in the Roman East in an attractive and modern way. It successfully analyses the impact of the technological innovation, cultural exchange and the actors involved — parameters that affected the formation and transformation of cities and resulted in fundamental changes in the social, economic and cultural lives of the population of Roman Asia Minor.
