We take for granted that the wheel has been around forever — after all, it’s a pretty simple design, right?

It’s not as simple as you might think. It took many years and many adaptations to create the wheel as we know it — and it forever changed the course of history once perfected.

Here are a brief history and a few interesting facts about the invention of the wheel.

The Beginning

All things considered, the wheel as we know it is a fairly new invention. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when, but the best guess is that 3500 B.C is when the first wheels were invented.

In fact, the first “wheel,” created in Mesopotamia (now Iraq), was actually a slab of clay used as a potter’s wheel. This slab could be set horizontally and spun to allow a potter to create symmetrical jars and pots.

The wheel as a transportation device came some time afterward. There is some debate about where and when this happened. Wheels may have had their start in Mesopotamia; however, there have also been images of wheeled carts found in what is now Poland.

Generally, experts do not believe that different groups of people in various locations invented the wheel around the same time. Instead, it’s more likely that, once perfected, the technology spread rapidly across Eurasia and the Middle East.

The Challenge

The wheel design is more complicated than it looks, because the wheel itself is only one part of several that makes it “roll.” Let’s look a bit closer at the challenges the wheel’s inventors faced.

It’s likely that, at one point, people moved a large item by placing it on a log, which was then rolled forward onto another log, and so on. This was obviously a laborious and time-consuming process, but still preferable to using manpower alone.

It’s possible that this planted the seed for what would eventually become the wheel.

The challenge, however, and what made it so hard to make the leap from log-rolling to wheeling, was figuring out a way to attach wheels to a cart or surface — and have them still roll.

Enter: The Axle

The axle was the lynchpin that changed wheel technology. Without a well-fitting axle, a wheel cannot turn. But in order to adequately craft axles, carpenters needed the correct tools, including gouges and chisels.

The metal tools needed to create the perfectly fitted wheels and axles didn’t become common until around 4000 B.C. Once more craftspeople had access to tools, building wheels and axles became much easier and allowed the wheel to become more widely used.

Even once the wheel became more common, it wasn’t immediately used as a transportation device — the best option for transportation was still camels and other livestock. However, wheels found a use in domestic purposes like milling and pottery making, and eventually, for wheelbarrows, chariots, and beyond.

The Modern Age

It’s hard to imagine what our world be like if the wheel hadn’t been invented. At the very least, our modern age would look nothing like it does. Just think — we use wheels for vehicles, gears in motors and machinery, casters to allow easier movement of heavy objects, on bikes, skates, dollies, wagons, children’s toys, and wheelchairs — the list is endless!

Interested in Learning More Beyond the Invention of the Wheel?

History and science are incredible, and our worldview is expanded when we read and learn interesting stories, including this one about the invention of the wheel!

Our blog maintains a great selection of interesting articles — check it out today and learn something new about your world!