How to Keep Beverages Cool Outside the Refrigerator

April 25, 2012

"In the industrialized world, we know only of one way to cool beverages: place containers in refrigerators. This practice, which occurs on a massive scale, is utterly dependent on fossil fuels.

"However, people obtained the same result much more #sustainably before the advent of the Industrial Revolution. In hot, dry climates, we used porous earthenware jugs that were not only re-usable, but also kept water cool by taking advantage of natural energy sources.

"The best known example is the Spanish ‘#botijo’, an unglazed ceramic container that cools beverages by evaporation. Similar drinking containers can be found in other Mediterranean countries, as well as in Mexico (where it is known as a ‘#búcaro’) and on the Indian subcontinent (where it is called a ‘#ghara’, ‘#matka’ or ‘#suhari’).

"The ceramic water cooler probably originated in the Indus Valley Civilization, which would make it 5000 years old."

Read more:
https://www.notechmagazine.com/2012/04/botijos.html

#SolarPunkSunday #KeepingCool #LowTech #NoTech #AncientTechnology