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Secondary sourceArtifact1688

Fountain with Figures Engraving

1688

A plate from the same 1688 water-art book showing a pneumatic fountain design in the tradition associated with Heron of Alexandria.

This fountain design illustrates engineering principles rooted in the pneumatic devices Heron described in antiquity.

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Woodcut engraving from an early modern book showing a hydraulic fountain system: figures on a raised platform, labeled pipes and valves, a fountain jet at upper right, and lettered reference marks along the base.
Fountain design engraving, from a 1688 book on water art. Deutsche Fotothek.

About this source

What it is

This woodcut engraving comes from the same 1688 book on hydraulics as the title page featuring Heron. It shows a hydraulic fountain system with figures on a raised platform, labelled pipes and valves, and a jet of water, with lettered reference marks explaining the mechanism.

Why it matters

Fountains driven by air and water pressure were among the devices Heron described in his ancient writings on pneumatics. This later illustration shows how his principles were still being applied and taught by engineers over a thousand years after his lifetime, connecting ancient Greek science to early modern European technology.

Look closer

  • What do the labelled pipes and valves tell you about how this fountain was meant to work?
  • Why would a book explain a fountain's mechanism with lettered reference marks?
  • How might this design be connected to much older Greek ideas about air and water pressure?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Hero of Alexandria on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Belopoiika (design drawing of a siege engine)

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Title page of a 1589 Italian book, engraved in black and white with an ornate architectural border of columns, scrolls and a central medallion. Printed text reads Di Herone Alessandrino De gli automati, ouero Machine se moventi, libri due, tradotti dal greco da Bernardino Baldi, with a small shield reading In Venetia, appresso Girolamo Porro, 1589.Book

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De gli automati, ouero Machine se mouenti

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