Modern civilization owes much of its existence to the inventor of the wheel. It's hard to imagine what life would be like without vehicles that use this useful gadget. Today, a car, a train, or even an airplane cannot do without a wheel. And how much pleasure riding a two-wheeled bike is! Who is to be thanked for inventing the wheel?
Wheel as a symbol of civilization
If a competition were announced for an emblem to denote human fantasy, it could well be a wheel. This device, created by the indomitable power of the human imagination, is the basis of earthly civilization. Energy sources change, new engines and vehicles are created, and only the wheel remains practically unchanged.
Unfortunately, history has not brought to the present time the name of the one who first invented and designed the wheel. No one can say with certainty where and when the first track left by a wheeled carriage appeared on the ground. Some researchers, based on data from archaeological excavations, suggest that the people of Asia were the first to invent the wheel.
It is likely that the very first wheel was a round piece of stone or wood.
Ancient wheels made of clay have also been found on the territory of today's Slovenia. The find dates back to about the fifth millennium BC. Wheels were also found on the territory of Poland, Germany and the Black Sea region. The references to the wheel in Mesopotamia date back to the 4th millennium BC. There, the wheel had a bent rim and hub.
How the wheel was invented: the mystery of history
It was difficult for a person to come across the idea of a wheel, since in nature he saw only different kinds of levers - wings, tails, legs and paws of animals. Perhaps a round-looking disk of a daylight could lead a person to the idea that such a shape could be used for movement?
Interestingly, the inhabitants of America, Africa and a number of countries in the Pacific region have not used the wheel for many centuries. They carried loads on themselves or transported on pack animals. In some localities, sledges and drags pulled by domestic animals were widely used. Some researchers see the reason for the absence of a wheel in such cultures is that there were no good dirt roads.
But the Inca civilization in Peru refutes this hypothesis - there were roads there and were in excellent condition. But the Inca wheel appeared very late.
It is possible that the invention of the wheel is the result of collective creativity. In ancient times, people moved heavy objects along the ground, placing them on a row of rounded logs. On such rollers, it was relatively easy to move the load on a horizontal surface. Who knows if observing this process helped to appreciate the dignity of the circle and create a prototype of a modern wheel?
