The karez of the Sauran region of Central Asia

摘要

A large number of lines of water collection wells were identified by aerial surveys in the aridnregion near the ancient city of Sauran on the Middle Syr Darya (South Kazakhstan, Central Asia).nThey are locally called karez, which in Persian means ‘water uplift’. Initially these were assumednto be qanat, a water collection and distribution system that is widespread in the Middle East,nNorth Africa and Central Asia. Recent surveys discovered more than 100 km of such lines in thenSauran area. The most surprising discovery was that there was no evidence of galleries thatnmight have collapsed due to poor construction or maintenance. The excavations of a series ofnthese wells are described and a new model for water transport and delivery is proposed thatntakes advantage of the local hydrogeology. The study has historical significance for thenreconstruction of water and land use in the Turkestan oasis during the last 2000 years; andnthe rediscovery of this forgotten technique could have economic significance for modern landnreclamation in desert zones.