25 Pictures of Water Management in Northern Oman

During my graduate studies, I was awarded a Wenner-Gren Dissertation Fieldwork Grant that funded ethnoarchaeological research for my dissertation in Northern Oman. That research has been published in various mediums. Some of my findings on water management were part of a co-authored book chapter. This post takes you behind-the-scenes of that publication by giving you a glimpse of 25 pictures of water management in Northern Oman.

The Publication

I co-authored a book chapter comparing ancient water management in Southern Arabia, specifically in Yemen and Oman. My co-author, Michael Harrower, and I examined the archaeological evidence and discussed our own ethnoarchaeological work in each region.

The full citation is below:

If you are having an issue finding our chapter, feel free to contact me.

25 Pictures of Water Management in Northern Oman

I took a lot of pictures as part of my ethnoarchaeological fieldwork. The images documented some of my findings and helped me remember what I encountered. I still look back at them to brainstorm and write publications, including the book chapter that inspired this post.

Here is a behind-the-scenes look at 25 pictures of water management in Northern Oman from my fieldwork archive.

A ‘legil’ is a water-holding structure in Oman
A water dispensing structure
A Well
A removable pipe in the falaj
A water filter fixed upon a pipe resting on a legil
A mix of water dispensing and small amounts of water holding
Opening a pipe into a specific field
Redirecting water into 4 directions
A falaj system in an oasis
Looking down a well
Flooding a field
Water movement between recent and historic structures
Sprinklers for fields
Faucets and pipes for washing
Pumping systems
A small legil
Intentional redirection of water
An empty well
Fields being set up and with openings created for water entry
Water flowing to a legil
Pipes in and part of a garden
Well machinery including a belt
Filling a legil in a date palm garden
Walkway into a well
Flowing falaj

Closing Thoughts

There are a variety of water management strategies in northern Oman. The 25 pictures above depict some of the management methods currently used in the region. They inspired our book chapter’s discussion of the creativity, resilience, sustainability of these strategies in the past, present, and, potentially, the future.

Have you encountered a water management strategy, used in the past or present, that stood out to you? Let me know in the comments below!

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Smiti Nathan

I’m an archaeologist that travels around the world for both work and pleasure. I have a penchant for exploring ancient and modern places and the people, plants, and foods entangled in them. I write about archaeology, travel, and productivity.

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