An ornate rectangular woodcut headpiece features a central oval medallion. Inside the medallion is a palm tree with the Latin motto "QUÆ NATURA DEDIT REDDO," which translates to "I give back what nature gave." This reflects the theme of returning water to the earth or the cycle of natural resources. The medallion is flanked by symmetrical baroque scrollwork and floral motifs.

The

Second Part

of the Theater of Hydraulic Machines

The First Chapter.

Concerning Scoop-Wheels and Screw-Engines.

A Scoop-Wheel with its Housing and a Separate Water-Wheel.

In the First Part of this Theater original: "Theatri Machinarum Hydraulicarum," referring to the first volume of this comprehensive series on mechanical engineering, various types of scoop-wheels Schöpff-Rädern: wheels fitted with buckets or containers to lift water for irrigation or drainage were presented. However, they were all shown without the necessary scaffolding or bearings, except for one which was directed to be built upon two ships. This was done so that the machine could be moved to wherever it was needed for the irrigation Wässerung: the artificial application of water to land or soil of meadows and gardens, and also so that it could be hidden in a convenient place during the winter season to protect it from the ice-drift original: "Eiß-Fahrt"; the dangerous period when river ice breaks up and flows downstream, which could easily crush stationary wooden machinery.

Presented here now is a scoop-wheel, along with its separate water-wheel Wasser-Rad: the primary wheel driven by the current to provide power to the machine, and the housing required for this purpose.