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Historical development of rainwater harvesting and use in
Hellas: a preliminary review
S. Yannopoulos, G. Antoniou, M. Kaiafa-Saropoulou and A. N. Angelakis
ABSTRACT
The uneven temporal and partial distribution of water resources in Hellas, and especially
southeastern regions, has resulted in the construction of various water systems for collection and
storage of rainwater, since their very early habitation. Ever since, technologies for the construction
and use of several types of cisterns and other relevant hydraulic strictures have been developed. The
main diachronic achievements in rainwater harvesting and use in Hellas from the earliest times of
humankind to the present is studied. Emphasis is given to the periods of great achievements such as
the Hellenistic and the Roman. The major necessity of water justifies not only the innovations found
throughout the historical time-line of these constructions but also the most advanced engineering of
each era applied to these constructions. Also, the importance of this hydrotechnology and the
concept of the value of water-saving to present and future times is considered. Aspects referring to
hygienic precautions for the purity of the water collected and stored are another issue that is worth
examining.
S. Yannopoulos (corresponding author)
Faculty of Engineering, School of Rural and
Surveying Engineering,
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki,
Thessaloniki 54124,
Greece
E-mail: giann@vergina.eng.auth.gr
G. Antoniou
Department of Architecture Engineering,
National Technical University Athens,
Ioanou Soutsou 44, Athens GR 11474,
Greece
M. Kaiafa-Saropoulou
School of Architecture,
Aristotle University,
54124 Thessaloniki, Hellas, Cherianon 7,
Kalamaria,
Thessaloniki 55133,
Greece
A. N. Angelakis
Institute of Iraklion,
National Foundation for Agricultural Research
(N.AG.RE.F.),
Iraklion 71307,
Greece
Key words |Bronze Age, classical and Hellenistic periods, flood risks, modern and future times,
rainwater harvesting, Roman and post-Roman times
INTRODUCTION
The English term ‘rainwater harvesting’has been interna-
tionally widely accepted (Koenig & Sperfeld ).
Moreover, it is interesting that emphasis is not on the utiliz-
ation of rainwater but on its harvesting. The noun
‘harvesting’means crop or yield and it is a synonym for
‘gift of nature’. So, ‘it goes without saying that the
harvested should be also utilized and every yield is preceded
by its own activities’.
However, there is no unified definition of the term
‘rainwater harvesting’commonly accepted by the scientific
community. Researchers employ a wide variety of terms
and definitions to describe the various methods aimed at
using, collecting and storing rain runoff in order to increase
the availability of water mainly for domestic and agricultural
uses in arid and semi-arid areas (Haut et al. ). Namely,
they use terms depending on their own purposes and they
do not attempt to give any strict definitions. Generally
speaking, the term rainwater harvesting is used as an
umbrella term for a range of methods of concentrating and
storing rainwater runoff, including from roofs (rooftop har-
vesting), the ground (runoff harvesting) and from channel
flow (flood water harvesting), from various sources (rain
or dew) and for various purposes (agricultural, livestock,
domestic water supply, environmental management). In
fact, rainwater harvesting is the collection, conveyance,
and storage of rainwater for future use (domestic, agricul-
tural, livestock, environmental management), while a
water harvest system can be defined as a system of catching
and storing rainfall until it can be beneficially used. For the
purposes of the present paper, we adopt the definition of
1022 © IWA Publishing 2017 Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
doi: 10.2166/ws.2016.200
Antoniou et al. ()according to which rainwater harvest-
ing is the collection of atmospheric precipitation, usually
collected and stored in artificial reservoirs known as cisterns
in order to be used for household purposes such as bathing
and washing, as well as irrigation and other urban uses and
after appropriate treatment to be used in dwellings, offices,
housing estates, industry, horticulture, and parks.
Rainwater harvesting for supplying drinking water in
urban areas has a long history especially in semi-arid
areas. From establishing the first permanent settlements in
the late Neolithic to early Bronze Age period, people in
Mesopotamia (e.g. today Iraq and Jordan) realized that life
is not possible without water and one of the first practices
for water supply was rainwater harvesting. Such water
supply systems are known in Minoan Crete and in the
Indus valley ca. 3rd millennium BC where purposeful con-
struction and operation of water supply networks and
bathrooms have been discovered (Angelakis ). Water
harvesting was also used in India and China from the 3rd
millennium BC (Oweis et al. ). Runoff originating from
rainwater over a surface (e.g. roof, yards, and other open
urban areas) could be collected and used for various uses.
It is an old practice that has widely been used to provide
urban dwellers with a potable water supply in many parts
of the developing world (Handia et al. ).
Rainwater harvesting is a non-conventional technology,
used to overcome the increasing demand for water due to
climate changes and/or variability (Amin et al. ). This
applies especially for arid and semi-arid climate conditions,
such as the regions around the Mediterranean basin and
especially in southeastern Hellas, where water resource
availability is extremely limited mainly during the summer
(Mays et al. ). Hellas has a great history in rainwater har-
vesting since prehistoric times and in addition very low
water availability is faced particularly in southeastern
regions (Angelakis et al. a). Thus, old Hellenic water
management practices could offer lessons and challenges
for improvement of today’s and maybe future water
technologies.
Harvesting, conservation and reuse of rainwater are a
sustainable practice by which not only water availability
could be substantially increased but also flood risks could
be eliminated (Haut et al. ). In the future, decentralized
multi-purpose rainwater harvesting systems should be useful
infrastructure to mitigate water-related disasters such as
flooding, sudden water break and fire events, especially in
highly developed future urban areas (Pazwash ). Nowa-
days, the art of collecting rainwater has received renewed
attention and interest in many countries of the world as a
viable decentralized water source (e.g. German, Italy, and
Spain in Europe; India, China, Malaysia, Korea, and Japan
in Asia; Kenya, Ethiopia, Syria, and Tunisia in Africa; sev-
eral states of the USA and Canada in North America;
Brazil in South America; and Australia and New Zealand).
The aim of this paper is to present the main diachronic
achievements in rainwater harvesting and use in Hellas,
from the earliest times of humankind to the present. Empha-
sis is given to the periods of great achievements. Also, the
importance of this hydro-technology for present and future
times is considered.
PHYSICAL SETTINGS
Hellas is a rather mountainous area of 131,962 km
2
, located
in southeastern Europe. It has one of the longest coastlines
in the world, almost 16,000 km. Half of the aforementioned
length includes the approximately 6,000 Hellenic islands
(EOT ). Hellas has a strategic location, positioned
between Asia, Africa and Europe and forming a natural
and vital bridge between the three continents. This unique
geographical position has determined its historical course
throughout both ancient and modern times. The total popu-
lation of Hellas is 11,200,000 inhabitants.
Climate
The Hellenic territory has a generally warm, temperate
type of climate, which is characterized by mild, rainy win-
ters and dry summers. According to the Koppen climate
classification, based on temperature and atmospheric pre-
cipitation, the climate of almost all the country falls in the
category Csa. The category Crefers to the humid climate
with mild winters, the first subclassification sconcerns the
dry summer and the second one the long and warm
summer. That means the Mediterranean climate, character-
ized by mild, wet winters and mild, hot and dry summers,
1023 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
because of the influence of subtropical anticyclones (Kout-
soyiannis et al. ).
Hydrology
Although Hellas receives enough rainfall to meet all its needs
for water, unfortunately the water resources of the country
are mismanaged. The total annual volume of precipitation
averages 116,330 Mm
3
/yr, putting Hellas at least equivalent
with many other European countries (CCISC ). Concern-
ing hydrology Hellas confronts many complex situations
among which the most predominant are: (a) uneven temporal
distribution of precipitation, namely during the wet season
(winter) falling as 85% of the total precipitation and the rest
(dry season) taking place during the summer; (b) highly
uneven spatial distribution of precipitation; (c) the northern
part of the country being affected by transboundary waters
(four major rivers originating in neighboring countries,
namely the rivers Strymon, Nestos and Evros from Bulgaria
and the Axios River from FYROM); (d) imbalance of water
demand with peak abstraction for irrigation and tourism pur-
poses in the summer months, when the available water
resources are at a minimum (practically no rainfall); and (e)
highly uneven spatial distribution of demand, as a result of
overconsumption associated with the excessive concen-
tration of people in the urban centers, semi-arid touristic
islands, and other areas.
A decrease in atmospheric precipitation in recent years is
indicated (Koutsoyiannis et al. ). The available measure-
ments show that, in the course of the past century,
precipitation decreased by around 20% in western Hellas
and by 10% in eastern Hellas (CCISC ). However, in
regard of there being a more permanent climate change in
the country, the limited range of reliable hydrological time
series in connection with the inherent complexity and large
climate variability and uncertainty does not allow safe con-
clusions (Markonis & Koutsoyiannis ). Such trends,
which are universal phenomena throughout the period of his-
tory for which there are measuring data around the planet,
and all geophysical processes constitute the conceptual
basis of the physical behavior known as long-term persistence
or the Hurst phenomenon (Markonis & Koutsoyiannis ).
Regardless of the causes of the observed trends or changes in
climatic conditions and anthropogenic influences on them,
climatic variations and the Hurst phenomenon should be
taken into account in the management of water resources
as an important additional source of uncertainty.
PREHISTORIC TIMES (CA. 3200–1100 BC)
Minoans developed remarkable technologies for collecting
and transporting water to settlements on Crete and other
islands (Mays et al. ). Different techniques were applied
to ensure the water supply, as (a) management of spring and
runoff water locally and (b) transportation and storage of
water. These techniques were differentiated according to
local hydrogeological conditions and the size of the settle-
ments (Angelakis et al. b). Also during Minoan times,
the focus of water and wastewater management was on
sustainable small-scale, water safety, cost-efficient, and
environmentally friendly management practices.
Due to very dry summers, rainfall collection was accom-
plished from open surfaces (e.g. roofs of buildings and
yards). Hydraulic structures associated with rainfall collec-
tion were found in Knossos, Phaistos, Tylissos, Aghia
Triadha, Myrtos Pyrgos, Zakros, and Chamaizi (Figure 1(a)).
These hydraulic structures include large stone conduits with
branches that were used to supply collected water to cis-
terns. Terracotta pipes were also used to convey rainwater
to cisterns (Angelakis ). In Myrtos, Pyrgos, such a terra-
cotta pipe of rectangular cross-section supplied the nearby
cistern system with stormwater collected from the rooftops
(Cadogan ). By the collecting systems water was con-
veyed into cisterns, a technique still practiced today in
rural areas of the Hellenic islands. This technology of rain-
water storage for water supply was very well developed
and was continuously used up to modern times (Mays
et al. ). The Minoan water cisterns were of cylindrical
shape, constructed with stones under the soil surface, with
a diameter ranging from 1.5 to 7.0 m and depth from 2.5
to 5.0 m.
One of the salient characteristics of the Minoan era in
Crete was the treatment devices used for water supply in
palaces, cities, and villages from the beginning of the
Bronze Age (Spanakis ). The major such treatment
devices are terracotta filters and sand filters (Figure 1(b)).
1024 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
HISTORICAL TIMES (CA. 500 BC–AD 330)
Classical and Hellenistic periods
As Koutsoyiannis & Patrikiou ()pointed out, the most
important centers of the so-called poleis (plural of polis)
or city-states were built in the driest areas of ancient
Hellas. Although the exact reasons are unknowns, it is
assumed that ancient Hellenes might have considered a
dry climate as more convenient (i.e. protection against
floods) or healthier (i.e. protection from water-related dis-
eases). Thus, all the most important Hellenic cities since
the Bronze Age, lasting for millennia, were established in
areas under water scarcity (Yannopoulos et al. ).
In many of these poleis, mainly the Aegean Islands, clas-
sical and Hellenistic Crete and other waterless regions of the
mainland and in their acropoleis (plural of acropolis) there
existed no springs, deep wells or any other source of water
inside the fortified settlements. To ensure a water supply
for the inhabitants, especially in case of siege, the ancient
Hellenes built cisterns to collect rainwater during the rainy
season.
It is a fact that both in archaic and classical times, and
furthermore during the Hellenistic era, rainwater cisterns
were widely used and improved. Indeed, the appearance
and the wide spread of aqueducts in Hellenic cities from
the 6th and 5th centuries BC did not displace the role of rain-
water tanks. In some cases, as in Morgantina or Delos
(Bezerra de Meneses et al. ), rainwater collectors consti-
tuted organic elements of the buildings, especially the most
luxurious. For example, regarding Morgantina the earliest
cisterns of the ca. 5th century BC were of irregular shape,
wide mouthed, hewn and lined with stucco, while those sub-
sequent, of the 3rd century BC, had a narrow mouth, long
neck and bottle-shaped profile (Crouch ).
During the different historical periods, archaic, classical,
and Hellenistic, Hellenes were improving the technology of
the Minoans and Mycenaeans with regard to cisterns. Over
time the technology of the construction of cisterns showed
further progress. Especially during the Hellenistic period,
the water supply in several cities all over Hellas was depen-
dent entirely on precipitation, since the ancient Hellenes
here harvested rainwater from the roofs, yards and other
open spaces of establishments into cisterns.
They were varied in construction methods and building
materials and capacity, as their dimensions depended on
their private or public use and the needs that had to be
covered. The medium (for that era) capacity of the water
tank of the ca. 2nd century BC in Aiani (Kozani), which
approached 40 m
3
, justifies its public use. It is a deep circu-
lar rock-cut cistern lined with masonry in its upper part
(Karamitrou-Mendesidi ). In contrast, large-scale rain-
water cisterns undoubtedly had public use, such as the
500 m
3
cistern at Orraon. In that case the cistern is located
by the main gate of the Hellenistic town and was inside an
enclosure. There are reconstructions which show it either
covered (Hoepfner ) or uncovered (Antoniou et al.
). In general there was an effort to ensure the quality
of the water, building either an enclosure around the
tank or a roof or in many cases both. The surface of
the enclosure or/and the roof were the runoff surfaces of
the cistern.
Water was usually led to them from the buildings’roofs
by downspouts. Round or rectangular in ground plan, roofed
Figure 1 |Minoan rainwater cisterns: (a) in Chamaizi village and (b) sand filter and water cistern in Phaistos palace.
1025 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
or not, they were always coated with impervious material,
and most usually were built below the ground level. Water-
proofing was achieved by coating all the internal surfaces
with hydraulic mortar; however, this method was not the
only one. In a small rectangular tank on Stageira of Chalk-
idiki the inner surfaces, were covered with, instead of
cement, a thick lead sheet, which means that its content
was intended for other needs than drinking (Sismanidis
). Frequently the mouth of rainwater collectors was nar-
rower than the rest so as to ensure limited access and
evaporation, for which these water constructions were
known as ‘bottle cisterns’(Hodge ). This type of flask-
shaped cistern was quiet common in the 5th century BC
and was still preferred during the Hellenistic period. Rec-
tangular and circular cross-section storage cisterns have
been found in many public and private buildings all over
Hellas (e.g. Lato, Dreros, Stageira, Santorini, Amorgos,
Pella, and Delos). In some castle areas, cisterns were even
totally or partly cut into rocks, as on the island of Rho (Anto-
niou a). That location was rather for saving space in the
above-ground areas and to be as low as possible to provide
better and larger collection, even from internal yards, than
providing cooler and more pleasant water. In addition the
subterranean construction in all cases –public or private –
provided the essential strength of the structure to support
the huge loads of the water pressure on the side walls.
In the southern hill of Olynthus, where the archaic city
was situated, a few hydraulic coated water tanks have been
identified. Moreover, in parallel with the aqueduct of the
classical city, on the northern hill, cisterns were located in
courts of at least eight houses in the early 4th century BC,
depending on rain water flowing in from the surrounding
roofs, which in two cases were directly above (Robinson
). They were all hewn in the rock and well waterproofed,
with a smaller sedimentation tank nearby, unfortunately
with no indication about the covering or the way the
water was hoisted. These flask-shaped cisterns of Olynthus
were, actually, very similarly constructed to Morgantina’s
water tanks, with narrow mouth and long neck, walls gradu-
ally widened to the bottom, and the bottom sloped to a bowl-
like depression where silt and debris were collected (Figure
2(a) and 2(b)).
The type of bottle-shaped cisterns was also very
common both in Athens and Piraeus, especially from the
end of the ca. 5th century BC, when rainwater cisterns
became very popular and replaced for at least one century
the water wells of the city (Hodge ;Crouch ;Stros-
zeck ), possibly due to the decrease of the underground
Figure 2 |Olynthus, bottle-shaped water cistern with a shallow sedimentation tank nearby: (a) drawing of the upper part and section (Robinson 1938) and (b) photograph of the visible part
after restoration (Kaiafa personal archive).
1026 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
water reservoirs, caused by over-drawing (Lang ). More-
over on the nearby arid island of Aegina several rainwater
cisterns, either flask-shaped or tank-shaped, are still in use
(Antoniou ). Their name, mpourthechtis, preserves
even now the ancient Hellenic term, omvrothechtis which
means rain collector. Some of those that were earlier, even
archaic (Faraklas ), located near the Elanion sanctuary
were almost rectangular, cut partially in the rock and most
possibly covered, as research under completion by the
German excavator has testified.
The public rainwater harvesting installation on the same
waterless island, Delos, was the Minoan krene, which is a
rectangular cistern of the third quarter of the ca. 6th century
BC, hewn in the rock, with a stepped access in one side down
to the water level. The inhabitants were trying to protect its
valuable content, rainwater. Thus, a ca. 4th century BC
inscription lists the fines for washing anything or throwing
anything into it, in order to restrict evaporation.
With the passing of the years, until the ca. 1st century BC,
a continuous effort is observed to increase the capacity of
the storage cisterns, so as to reduce overflows and ensure
greater water quantities. Thus, firstly, during the 4th century
BC one more complicated cistern type was used in order to
manage stormwater, which is the two-chambered cisterns.
Actually, that was a system composed of two flask-shaped
cisterns, of nearly the same depth, cut down into the living
rock, and covered by stucco, as they were intended for the
storage of rain water. These two waterproofed chambers
were connected by a tunnel, near their floor levels. These
bottle-shaped tanks were roofed usually by one or more
piers (Figure 3)(Stillwell ). Αsimilar water system, a
bit more complicated, consisting of three bell-shaped
chambers connected by two tunnels, has been also recently
found in a classical bathhouse located in front of the Dipy-
lon gate (Stroszeck ). Apart from in Athens this type
of two-chambered cistern has been found once in Olynthus.
In its general features it is similar with the three double cis-
terns already found in Athens, consisting of two bell-shaped
underground chambers, opening above in bottle-neck
mouths and connected by underground passages (Robinson
).
Similar installations, although much more complicated,
have been found in Piraeus. More specifically, the water
supply of the whole city was mainly based on underground
rainwater harvesting systems consisting of waterproofed
double or multi-chambered cisterns, bottle- or well-shaped
(more than 600 have been found, in addition to the wells),
all carved into the rock. These were linked to one another
with a grid of vaulted tunnels and wellshafts. This storm-
water harvesting network was developed under the city,
and constructed gradually after ca. 420 BC.
People, very much influenced by the Peloponnesian
war, started to construct these systems in order to reduce
overflows and to increase the volume of collected water,
so as to ensure water sufficiency (Koutis & Bentermacher-
Gerousis )(Figure 4).
In Delos, an island without any water resources other
than rainwater, both in the classical and Hellenistic periods,
the inhabitants used to manage stormwater by constructing
underground storage cisterns, so as to confront the small
quantity of water on their barren and arid island. Cisterns
in Delos were also well plastered, round or rectangular,
placed under the floor of the house peristyle and fitted
with marble well-heads and usually supplemented by a stair-
way so as to be cleaned. Water was hoisted up with clay
buckets on a rope or a chain lowered by the users. Traces
of rope marks have been found on cistern well-heads,
which were just like with those on well-mouths and very
often ornately decorated. In many cases, cisterns coexisted
with wells (Bezerra de Meneses et al. ). The presence
Figure 3 |Two-chambered cistern in Hellenistic Athens (Rotroff 1983).
1027 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
of a rainwater storage cistern and water well in the same
yard and their simultaneous use is not a Hellenistic develop-
ment. These two hydraulic installations, cistern and
well, were found in the palace of King Assur in the city of
Nimrud, Mesopotamia, from the ca. 9th century BC
(Drower ).
As for Hellas a similar installation has been found in
Akanthus of Chalkidiki, where a rainwater cistern coexists
with a well in the central courtyard of a Hellenistic building
(Trakosopoulou-Salakidou ). The cistern was situated
next to the stylobate so that rainwater was collected from
the surrounding roofs and directed by a vertical pipe
toward the cistern’s mouth, on which a separate stone ring
was seated, probably covered, both for safe water-drawing
and for dirt protection. The lead sheet cover of its bottom
confirms the supplemental role in daily consumption.
Lead affected the quality of stored water and made it unsui-
table for drinking and cooking. For these needs the users
were drawing water from an adjacent well. Therefore, the
rainwater gathered in the cistern was intended for other
uses: domestic and physical cleaning, residential irrigation,
craft consumption or workmanship.
The public granite-built vaulted cistern located just
below the theatre in Delos is another very interested
example of rainwater harvesting management. It is
22.50 m long and 6.00 m wide, with the missing roof resting
on eight arched foundations. The runoff surface of this
underground communal reservoir was the cavea of the thea-
tre, the area of the spectators’seats (Antoniou et al. ).
Rainwater was collected in the open gutter around the semi-
circular orchestra and poured into the cistern through an
underground conduit (Fraisse & Moretti ).
The extended use of the newly applied arches in the con-
struction of cisterns as in Delos proves the importance of the
rainwater cisterns and the implementation of the most
modern technologies in their building aiming not only at
the quality of the structure but mainly at increasing their
capacity.
Roman period (1st century BC–4th century AD)
The Romans focused on several infrastructure technologies
such as roads, aqueducts, and ports. Some of their most sig-
nificant constructions dealt with water supply. Besides the
impressive aqueducts (Adam ) and the well-engineered
water network, often made of lead pipes (De Feo et al. ),
they constructed not only reservoirs for storing the aqueduct
water but also rainwater cisterns in cases where there was
water need or scarcity. Besides the numerous Roman cis-
terns fed by aqueducts, all over their Empire (Mays et al.
) there were many examples of rainwater reservoirs. In
Italian territories there are several well-known rainwater cis-
terns as at Fermo (Paretti ) and at Baiae (Döring ).
Several examples present even today the incorporation of
their mass-scale engineering into rainwater harvesting
constructions.
A major aspect of the essential increase of the capacity
was the construction of large vaults which exploited much
Roman cement-type mortar. The large public rainwater cis-
terns were covered with single (Figure 5(a)) or multiple
(Figure 5(b)) vaults. In addition the load-bearing abilities of
the Roman walling permitted the construction of large,
above-ground reservoirs like the one in Minoa (Figure 5(a)).
Besides the large-scale rainwater examples there were
Figure 4 |Piraeus, rainwater harvesting system, multi-chambered rock-cut cisterns, linked with wells through vaulted tunnels (https://ocw.aoc.ntua.gr/courses/CIVIL100).
1028 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
small-scale, mostly residential, water storing and manage-
ment constructions which often –in areas with water
scarcity –operated as rainwater harvesting constructions.
POST-ANTIQUITY AND MEDIEVAL TIMES (CA.
5TH–15TH CENTURIES)
Following the transformation of the Roman Empire to the
Byzantine, building technologies, in general, and cistern
technologies, in particular, were widely practiced for the
construction of the infrastructures of the new capital,
Constantinople. There the huge (244 ×85 m
2
) open-air
Aetius cistern with capacity of approximately 300,000 m
3
(Müller-Wiener ) was either a distribution reservoir or
an auxiliary rainwater harvesting tank. Undoubtedly its
vast size collected large quantities of rainwater. The engin-
eering legacies are prominent since they were also used at
the relevant, but smaller, cistern of Aspar not far away
from the Aetius. In addition the retaining-wall technology
of the Romans continued and therefore large, semi-on-
ground cisterns such as the one east of Chora Monastery
in Constantinople were able to be built. Unfortunately the
skilled technological practices faded with time due to lack
of enough funds. Moreover the barbarian invasions reduced
somewhat the construction of public infrastructure. On the
other hand smaller rainwater cisterns continued. The best
preserved examples are found in monastic complexes,
palaces or fortresses (Figure 6(a) and 6(b)) and reflect the
typical Byzantine practice of incorporating small- and
medium-size vaults and domes, regular or lowered ones. In
every case the cisterns are located in secure places and in
most cases are below ground level.
Similar techniques were applied in smaller regional
and rural (Figure 7) constructions. In many cases in
front of the intake spout there was a small sedimentation
tank.
Figure 5 |Roman rainwater cisterns at (a) Minoa on Amorgos (G. Antoniou) and (b) the south foothills of the Acropolis, Athens (Mays et al. 2013).
Figure 6 |Byzantine-era cisterns at (a) Osios Loukas monastery in Boeotia, Hellas
(Orlandos 1926) covered with a lowered dome (notice the intake spout) and
(b) the Goulas of the castle at Leontari Arkadias (G. Antoniou).
Figure 7 |Byzantine-era cisterns in Amorgos: a small, vaulted one with an orifice (Mays
et al. 2013) and another flask-shaped on the left along with the partially paved
runoff surface (G. Antoniou).
1029 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
PRACTICES DURING THE VENETIAN AND
OTTOMAN PERIODS (15TH–18TH CENTURIES)
With the presence of westerners in the Hellenic territories,
rainwater harvesting was improved by the implementation
of advanced techniques introduced by the Venetians in
Crete (Angelakis ) and in a few other islands, from the
early 13th century. The construction and maintenance of
the runoff surfaces became not only extensive and well articu-
lated but were also protected from humans and livestock. The
large cisterns at Monemvasia, dated to the post-Byzantine
period (Mays et al. ), are characteristic examples. But
also in smaller examples as in castle of Kalymnos in the
Dodecanese, the articulated and protected runoff surface
(Figure 8) should be related to western influences. It should
not be omitted that hygienic precautions seem to become
an issue of greater importance than previously.
Byzantine traditions such as those of placing cisterns
under churches can be traced at the double-vaulted rainwater
cistern under the southern extension of the Aghia Sofia
Byzantine church in Monemvasia (Antoniou et al. ). It
can be concluded that during that era there was an increase
in rainwater cisterns. That is not only due to the better finan-
cial capabilities of the western states but also to the increase
in the workshops of various kinds during that period that
increased the need for water and therefore the construction
of cisterns. Some of them are characteristically located in
the vicinity of oil press workshops, providing them with the
essential water for olive oil production.
The Ottomans –besides the extensive construction of
aqueducts in the Hellenic region (Antoniou b)–not
only repaired and improved rainwater harvesting construc-
tion which preexisted, such as the cistern in the castle of
Mytelene (Figure 9(a)), but also formed a specific type of
rainwater cistern where the runoff area is the outer sur-
face of the dome. The intake was through sloped strip
around the perimeter, through (usually several) spouts
(Figure 9(b)).
Figure 8 |Post-Byzantine cisterns: (a) the stepped runoff of the main communal cistern at the castle of Pothia in Kalymnos and (b) that at Kato Lakkos in Chora, a partially rainwater and
partially water abstraction tank (Antoniou 2009).
Figure 9 |Ottoman-era cisterns: (a) the cistern modified by the Ottomans at the castle of Mytelene and (b) typical formation of Ottoman rainwater cistern wherethe runoff area is the outer
surface of the dome (G. Antoniou).
1030 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
EARLY INDUSTRIAL AND MODERN TIMES (19TH
AND 20TH CENTURIES)
The early industrial and industrial eras for Hellas were
related to the independent Hellenic state. New, for that
time, water technologies started to be developed all over
the country. They were based on past technologies as well
as on new ones such as deep wells, pumps, pipes, and so
on. At that time the growth of populations required an
increase in agricultural production. In addition, in many
cases the steep terrain highly increased the scale and the
cost of the required hydraulic projects (Koutsoyiannis &
Angelakis ). Meanwhile, the water supply of urban
areas was facing similar problems due to population
increase (Antoniou b). Thus, the collection, storage,
and use of rainwater in several urban areas in southeastern
Hellas were still practiced during the middle of the last cen-
tury and still are for stockbreeding purposes (Antoniou
). On the other hand although some traditional tech-
niques and materials continued during the 19th and early
20th centuries, modern materials and techniques were
implemented in the ancient method of rainwater harvesting,
like the rainwater runoff surfaces and tanks at Ithaki made
of reinforced concrete (Antoniou et al. ).
FUTURE TRENDS
Urbanization has had a drastic impact on the natural pro-
cess of stormwater runoff. It has increased both the peak
and the volume of runoff, has reduced infiltration, and has
caused water pollution. Structural stormwater control
measures are designed to reduce the volume and pollution
of stormwater by harvesting and reusing it, infiltration into
porous surfaces, and facilitating its evaporation. Acceptable
strategies by which flood risks will be eliminated and conser-
vation and reuse will be increased include the use of
impermeable surfaces, such as green roofs, pervious pave-
ments, grid pavers, and nonstructural techniques such as
rain gardens, vegetated swales, disconnection of impervious
surfaces, and of course harvesting and reuse of rainwater. A
cost-effective and environmentally friendly solution is the
harvesting and reuse of stormwater runoff, in general, and
particularly from roofs (Pazwash ).
In addition to flood risks, urbanization causes thermal pol-
lution from dark impervious surfaces, such as roofs and streets.
Urban development alters the natural hydrologic process. As
this trend continues, the need for conservation and reuse of
water becomes a challenging reality. In the future rainwater
harvesting and reuse will grow not only in areas with low
water availability but also in areas with rainfall more than
1,000 mm annually. In Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas,
for example water reuse has been established for some time
(Pazwash ). Also special programs have been developed
by which people are encouraged to use measures for rainwater
conservation and reuse. We should be concerned about our
limited water supplies and take measures to collect storm-
water for our use. To achieve long-term water sustainability,
local and state agencies and schools need to adopt challenging
actions in leading the public to promote conservation and
reuse of runoff in general, and roof rain in particular.
CONCLUSION
Rainwater is both renewable and sustainable. Thus, since
the Minoan era rainwater harvesting management has
been developed and expressed with a sophisticated technol-
ogy not only of rainwater storage cisterns, public or not, but
also of runoff surfaces and collecting constructions as well.
In any case and any period, people have collected rainwater
directly from roofs and stored it cisterns of various sizes,
capacities and types. Sometimes stone access stairways
have been common.
As Heggen ()pointed out, in the last few decades there
has been an increasing interest in the use of harvested water
with an estimated 100,000,000 people worldwide currently uti-
lizing a rainwater system of some description. Nowadays, both
rainwater and stormwater harvesting are recognized as practi-
cal and cost-effective tools for water supply and stormwater
managementin arid and semiarid lands. Worldwide, rainwater
harvesting has recovered its importance as a valuable water
resource, alternative or supplementary, in conjunction with
more conventional water supply technologies. If rainwater
harvesting is practiced more widely, many water shortages,
actual or potential, can be alleviated.
Until the mid-20th century, one in three Hellenic houses
in the villages and in remote rural and island areas had
1031 S. Yannopoulos et al.|Historical development of rainwater harvesting Water Science & Technology: Water Supply |17.4 |2017
underground water tanks. However, in recent decades with
the expansion of the municipal water supply network this
technique has gradually been abandoned. Despite that, in
several areas with water scarcity, the municipal water
supply was supported by rainwater tanks and relevant con-
crete paved runoff surfaces, as for example on the very
rainy island of Ithaki (Antoniou a). Today, rainwater
in urban areas of Hellas is discharged by 10% through a
combined sewer system, by 75% through a separate drainage
system and by 15% flowing in the streets and directly drain-
ing into surface or ground waters. At the present time, there
is no recorded information about the number of homes that
have rainwater collection facilities for drinking or for
additional uses such as watering and washing. On the
other hand the new Building Regulation Decree, as well as
the preexisting regulations and relevant legislation for the
Aegean islands, excludes the surface of rainwater cisterns
from the total one permitted, promoting, somewhat, in
that way their construction in areas with water shortage.
That kind of promotion along with the increased cost of
the water supply in such areas results in many cases in the
incorporation of rainwater cisterns in newly built houses.
Since 2008 a private company of the refreshment
industry sponsored in cooperation with the international
organization Global Water Partnership-Mediterranean
(GWP-Med) a rainwater collection program on 28 islands
of the Cyclades and Dodecanese, which installed or repaired
50 rainwater collection systems and three drinking water
plants, to achieve annual savings of 62.4 ×10
6
L of water.
The aim of this interesting initiative was the promotion of sus-
tainable methods to enhance the availability of water at the
local level and the education of young people in the proper
management of water. Apart from individual private initiat-
ives, rainwater harvesting should be revised at country level
and be imposed by a legislative framework on all new con-
struction in arid and semi-arid areas. As aforementioned, in
many countries of Europe, Asia, Africa, America, and Austra-
lia rainwater harvesting is obligatory not only to address
water scarcity, but to hold stormwater and to reduce flood
risks. Undoubtedly, ‘our past can teach us a lot’.
Finally historical studies on rainwater harvesting, collec-
tion, and storage technologies provide insights into possible
responses of modern societies to the future sustainable man-
agement of water resources. In a highly urbanized future
world, rainwater harvesting and water reuse systems should
be highly important. These systems could contribute to (a)
increase in water conservation, availability and use efficiency
and (b) reduction of energy production costs and flood risks.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Part of this review paper was presented at the 4th IWA
International Symposium on Water and Wastewater
Technologies in Ancient Civilizations, September 17–19,
2016, Coibra, Portugal, http://www.wwac2016.com/.
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