Water - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Birdland · 05-29-2002, 08:16 PM

I imagine that hobbits got their water from wells, just like you see in old paintings, with the rope and bucket. Or perhaps they had invented the hand pump by then? Most houses would have had their own well, and if there was a public square in the town, this would probably have had a well, too.

Also they would have had rain barrels and underground cisterns to catch run-off from rain showers. The sink you see in Bilbo's kitchen was a "dry sink", I believe. It had a drain, but no pump. The water would have been carried from the well and heated in a kettle for washing up.

The Shire was a lush and green land, and I'm sure water was plentiful. But public water lines supplying houses would not have been an option, mainly because there would have been no way to pump the water through the pipes.

Which brings up the question: how did a huge city like Minas Tirith supply their people with water?

05-29-2002, 08:16 PM	#3
Birdland Ghastly Neekerbreeker Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: the banks of the mighty Scioto Posts: 1,751	I imagine that hobbits got their water from wells, just like you see in old paintings, with the rope and bucket. Or perhaps they had invented the hand pump by then? Most houses would have had their own well, and if there was a public square in the town, this would probably have had a well, too. Also they would have had rain barrels and underground cisterns to catch run-off from rain showers. The sink you see in Bilbo's kitchen was a "dry sink", I believe. It had a drain, but no pump. The water would have been carried from the well and heated in a kettle for washing up. The Shire was a lush and green land, and I'm sure water was plentiful. But public water lines supplying houses would not have been an option, mainly because there would have been no way to pump the water through the pipes. Which brings up the question: how did a huge city like Minas Tirith supply their people with water?