Image: A water seller in Naples offers a glass of water as refreshment to a woman who is carrying a large bundle under her arm, 1800-1899. London. The Wellcome Collection.
We would like to draw your attention to a lunch lecture by to environmental historian prof. dr. Petra van Dam. During this lunch lecture, professor Van Dam will delve into the history of drinking water – perhaps the most valuable liquid known to humans (see the full title and abstract below).
The lecture takes place on Tuesday the 8th of April from 12:00 until 13:00 in the VU main building in HG-5B-43.
Please join us with and during your lunch!
Blue Diversity: Drinking water in the Netherlands, 1500-1850
Water is that transparent fluid that we can tap any time of the day from our drinking water system. It is the same almost everywhere and we use if for everything from brewing tea to flushing the toilet. Before the twentieth century a much more refined water culture existed. A ranking of water existed depending on quality criteria and availability, differing locally and relating to seasons. How did people deal with water, how did they think about it, what was their access and how did that change? Millions are being invested currently to find out how we can use recycled water or rain water. It is interesting and reassuring that we have hundreds of years of experience with an everyday reality of Blue Diversity.
N.B. This lecture will take place in person in Amsterdam and will not be streamed or recorded.
However, the Dutch version of the lecture can be watched here: https://video.leidenuniv.nl/media/t/1_fxq2j725 (start of the lecture is at 48:53).
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