How did water dowsing begin?
Cave paintings in northwestern Africa that are 6,000-8,000 years old are believed to show a water dowser at work. The exact origin of the divining rod in Europe is not known. The device was introduced into England during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558-1603) to locate mineral deposits, and soon afterward it was adopted as a water finder throughout Europe. Water dowsing seems to be a mainly European cultural phenomenon; it was carried across the Atlantic to America by some of the earliest settlers from England and Germany.