An Investigation of Vitruvius’ Technical Vocabulary Relating to Water Conduits and Pipelines in De arch. 8.6.6-9: vis spiritus and colluviaria (Re)examined1)

Abstract

This article investigates the terms vis spiritus and colluviaria in the context of Vitruvius' description of water pipelines (De arch. 8.6.6-9) by comparing the Vitruvian passage with Greek medical texts and concepts from fluid mechanics. It makes a new suggestion for the translation of the hapax legomenon colluviaria and supports a reinterpretation of the technical term vis spiritus.