A Persian-wheel system for raising water

Artist: Sita Ram (fl. c.1810-1822)
Medium: Watercolour
Date: 1814

Illustration of a Persian-wheel system for raising water, being driven by a pair of oxen, with the cantonments of Saharanpur and Lord Moira's encampment in the distance. A Persian wheel is a system of a chain of buckets slung round a vertical wheel, which is turned by a system of cogs and interlocking wheels powered here by a pair of oxen driven in a circle. The Persian wheel system or 'harat' was common in the western part of Saharanpur district. Inscribed below: 'Saharanpore with a Persian wheel for raising water.'