204
E. Iwasaki
Although water use differs by region according to the history, politics, and
economy, the main water problems are the same around the world. The abovementioned irrigation districts that depend on different types of wells have different
forms of livelihoods. By focusing on the wells drilled in Rashda village, this chapter
attempts to understand how the universal issue of the relationship between humans
and water changed with technological development.
2 Development of Modern Wells in Dakhla Oasis
2.1 Wells and Boring Until the Beginning
of the Twentieth Century
Little is known regarding the ancient methods of extracting water. Many of the wells
in Dakhla Oasis date back to the Roman era, but many ancient wells are completely
filled with sands, and no information could be found to understand the ancient method
of drilling. However, geologist H. J. Llewellyn Beadnell, who travelled to Dakhla
Oasis and spent nine years from 1896 to 1905 in the Libyan Desert (Western Desert),
observed that the ancient method of drilling used in the Roman era was as follows
1 :
The bores are practically in all cases lined to a depth with wooden casing, manufactured
from the wood of the doum-palm, date-palm, or acacia, which doubtless were then, as now,
cultivated in large numbers in the oasis. The timber was carefully fashioned into the required
lengths and fitted together by water-tight joints. During the cleaning operations to which
many of the old wells have been subjected in modem times, portions of the ancient casing
have frequently been extracted, and some of the examples which I have examined, especially
those made of acacia, proved to be in an excellent state of preservation. The wood of this
particular tree—‘sunt,’ as it is locally called—has remarkably enduring qualities both in and
out of the water, though not when subjected to alternations of wet and dry. Still, that it should
in some cases have retained its original qualities since Roman times is noteworthy. (Beadnell
1909: 186–187)
Beadnell observed in those days that the well-sinking method consisted of a
combination of the ancient boring method described above and modern boring
practices.
The local method at the time of Beadnell at the beginning of the twentieth century
was similar to the ancient or traditional boring practice. It consisted of sinking a
rectangular shaft that was usually 2 m
2 .
This work is carried out by hand, the ordinary native ‘fass’ being almost the only implement
used. As the shaft is cut out, it is timbered with lengths of palm-wood strung one below
the other, to prevent the walls from falling in. The excavation is carried as deep as possible,
the limit generally depending on the amount of sub-surface water met with. In the oasis
1 Beadnell was sent to the Libyan Desert as a member of the Geological Survey of Egypt from
1896 to 1905. He did nearly nine years of survey and exploration work in the Egyptian deserts. He
oversaw extensive boring and land-reclamation in the oases in the Libyan Desert.
E. Iwasaki
Although water use differs by region according to the history, politics, and
economy, the main water problems are the same around the world. The abovementioned irrigation districts that depend on different types of wells have different
forms of livelihoods. By focusing on the wells drilled in Rashda village, this chapter
attempts to understand how the universal issue of the relationship between humans
and water changed with technological development.
2 Development of Modern Wells in Dakhla Oasis
2.1 Wells and Boring Until the Beginning
of the Twentieth Century
Little is known regarding the ancient methods of extracting water. Many of the wells
in Dakhla Oasis date back to the Roman era, but many ancient wells are completely
filled with sands, and no information could be found to understand the ancient method
of drilling. However, geologist H. J. Llewellyn Beadnell, who travelled to Dakhla
Oasis and spent nine years from 1896 to 1905 in the Libyan Desert (Western Desert),
observed that the ancient method of drilling used in the Roman era was as follows
1 :
The bores are practically in all cases lined to a depth with wooden casing, manufactured
from the wood of the doum-palm, date-palm, or acacia, which doubtless were then, as now,
cultivated in large numbers in the oasis. The timber was carefully fashioned into the required
lengths and fitted together by water-tight joints. During the cleaning operations to which
many of the old wells have been subjected in modem times, portions of the ancient casing
have frequently been extracted, and some of the examples which I have examined, especially
those made of acacia, proved to be in an excellent state of preservation. The wood of this
particular tree—‘sunt,’ as it is locally called—has remarkably enduring qualities both in and
out of the water, though not when subjected to alternations of wet and dry. Still, that it should
in some cases have retained its original qualities since Roman times is noteworthy. (Beadnell
1909: 186–187)
Beadnell observed in those days that the well-sinking method consisted of a
combination of the ancient boring method described above and modern boring
practices.
The local method at the time of Beadnell at the beginning of the twentieth century
was similar to the ancient or traditional boring practice. It consisted of sinking a
rectangular shaft that was usually 2 m
2 .
This work is carried out by hand, the ordinary native ‘fass’ being almost the only implement
used. As the shaft is cut out, it is timbered with lengths of palm-wood strung one below
the other, to prevent the walls from falling in. The excavation is carried as deep as possible,
the limit generally depending on the amount of sub-surface water met with. In the oasis
1 Beadnell was sent to the Libyan Desert as a member of the Geological Survey of Egypt from
1896 to 1905. He did nearly nine years of survey and exploration work in the Egyptian deserts. He
oversaw extensive boring and land-reclamation in the oases in the Libyan Desert.