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Secondary sourcePainting2005

Heron's Fountain Diagram

Helix84 (assumed) · 2005

An amateur-made line diagram illustrating the siphon mechanism known as Heron's fountain, a device described by Hero of Alexandria.

This modern diagram illustrates a fountain device attributed to Hero of Alexandria, showing the principle behind his invention.

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Line diagram of Heron's fountain: a shallow dish-shaped basin sits above a tall-stemmed tube leading down to a lower flask partly filled with blue water. A second flask on the right, connected by a tube, has a jet of water spraying up from its inlet tube into an arc falling into the basin. A third tube runs from the right flask back to the lower flask, completing a closed loop.
Diagram of Heron's fountain, created by a Wikimedia Commons contributor, 2005.

About this source

What it is

This is a modern line diagram created in 2005 and uploaded to Wikimedia Commons by its creator. It illustrates the workings of a device called Heron's fountain, named after the ancient engineer Hero of Alexandria.

Why it matters

Hero of Alexandria described devices that used air and water pressure in clever ways. This diagram helps explain the principle behind one of his best-known inventions, showing how water can seem to defy gravity through a closed loop of tubes and basins. It reflects the lasting interest in his engineering ideas, even though the diagram itself is a modern teaching aid, not an ancient artifact.

Look closer

  • What parts of the diagram represent the basin, tubes, and flasks?
  • Why might someone create a diagram like this instead of showing a photograph of a real device?
  • What does this diagram leave out about how Hero originally described the fountain?

This painting 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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