Like it or not, plumbing is an essential part of life around the world. Plumbing provides people with drinking water, showers, toilets, and more. This trade is nothing new. Plumbing has a deep and rich history.
About four thousand years ago, a palace in Crete was built that had four separate drainage systems along with a sewer that the drains emptied to. This was one of the first rudimentary examples of plumbing in history. The pipes in this system were made of terra cotta and fixed with faucets that were made of precious metals and marble. There was even hot water! The palace also featured the world’s first flush toilet, known in history as a water closet. Unfortunately, this piece was made of wood and was destroyed along with the palace, so the water closet had to be re-invented. Sir John Harrington did just that in the sixteenth century. However, the toilet was not patented for another two hundred years in England.
Rewinding a little bit, it is fair to say that the scientists and designers of today owe a great deal of their success to the forerunners of plumbing-the Roman empire. This group is credited with great engineering abilities and developments in the areas of water and sewers. The term “plumber” was invented by this empire. In Latin, “plumbus” means lead. The first men who were charged with designing and repairing the early sewer systems would use lead to “plumb”-meaning to maintain and repair these pipes.
Public baths were a hot spot of early civilization that can be credited to plumbing innovation. Some of these tubs could seat thousands of people at one time. Since water supplies were often a great distance from the city, the systems required aqueducts to transport water. Early engineers used gravity and the natural contour of the land to move water fluidly. Some homes even had taps, particularly those of the rich.
Sewers were first built around eight hundred B.C. Some of these sewers are still in use today. As people began to realize the dangerous effects of germs and waste, these sewers became more important and necessary.
Plumbing is an occupation with a rich history. Modern plumbers should be proud of their career and its necessity in the ancient world.
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