ἄριστον μέν ὕδωρ: An Examination of the Public Waterworks in Athens in the Early 5thC BCE

Abstract

This article examines the design and social impact of waterways in Athens in the early 5thC BCE. While the Athenian political landscape transitioned from a series of tyrannies to democracy at the end of the Archaic period (ca. 650-480 BCE), the archaeological record also shows widespread innovation in the development of public water systems, particularly in sanitation and water supply. A movement away from buildings constructed by the Athenian tyrants facilitated the development of the Classical Agora and the creation of new public-use spaces and structures, like the Southeast Fountain House and the Great Drain in the Agora. The fountain has long been identified with the famous Peisistratid Enneakrounos (“Nine Spouts”) fountain, but through investigation into the arguments of J.M. Camp and Jessica Paga, I propose that a later date ca. 500 BCE is more suitable for the historical and archaeological context of the fountain. 

I investigate several Athenian waterworks built/maintained during the late Archaic period to the Classical period (~500-323 BCE): the Great Drain in the Agora, the Southeast Fountain House, the Klepsydra fountain, and the Asklepieion on the Akropolis. The works of Hippocrates, Thucydides, and—to a lesser extent—Pausanias, inform my examination of the implications of the construction of these waterworks and the development of democracy in the 5th century. These waterways show a dedicated shift from the private use of water and tyrannical building works, to a new, fully public and communal mode of engagement with the city and its resources.