Index / Inventions / The Wheel
Inventions
The Wheel
Mesopotamia · c. 3500 BCE
Probably the oldest piece of engineering on this site. A hub, an axle, and a rim — combined, they trade sliding friction (huge) for rolling friction (tiny), making transport, pottery, and every machine with a shaft possible.
Key specifications
Earliest known
~3500 BCE
Origin
Mesopotamia (Ur)
First use
Pottery wheel
Spoked wheel
~2000 BCE
Sheet 001 · Plate 1 of 1 · 1:1 infographic
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