A Unique Historical Water Lifting System in Southern Palestine

The high water-level of the aquifer in the southern coastal plain of Palestine sets the stage for many private wells in villages. Various researchers mentioned a unique method of drawing water in this region, the “self-emptying bucket,” which entailed attaching a rope rolled on a drum to a container and an animal that would pull it by walking away from the well. Once the container reached the surface, the water poured into a small collection pool. In order to ease the burden, the animal was guided downslope. This method was only useful for irrigating small areas, but since groundwater was widely accessible, every family could dig a well for its needs. Surveys in the southern coastal plain demonstrated that wells of this type have unique characteristics, rendering their vestiges readily identifiable in the field. The introduction of this technology is probably related to a new population that arrived from Arabia or North Africa during the nineteenth century CE.