istoryworld
Events relating to technology
In the earlist known example of ceramics, humans at Dolni Vestonice model figures in burnt clay
Needles of bone or ivory are now fine enough to take a thread as thin as horse hair
The spindle develops naturally in the process of twisting fibres into thread by hand
Neolithic communities in eastern Anatolia make implements of hammered copper - the first tentative step out of the Stone Age
Fragments of cloth, woven in Catal Huyuk, survive because they are carbonized in a fire
The first evidence of a loom comes from this period in Egypt, but some simple method of holding the warp must be as old as weaving
In Mesopotamia, and on the grass steppes of southern Russia, oxen are used to pull heavy loads on sledges
A simple hand-held plough is in use in Egypt and Mesopotamia, at least 1000 years before a heavier version is pulled by oxen
Copper is extracted from ore by smelting at various sites in Iran
An easily portable writing surface is developed, from the papyrus plant of the Nile
The lever is in use in both Mesopotamia and Egypt
Wheels are in use on carts, particularly where wood is easily available and the ground rough - as in the forests of Europe
Potters in Mesopotamia turn their pots on wheels
The Chinese discover that the cocoon of a certain worm can be unwound, spun as thread and then woven - thus creating silk
Objects are cast in bronze, at Ur in Mesopotamia - introducing what is later called the Bronze Age
Yarns of spun cotton survive at Mohenjo-daro, one of the two great cities of the Indus civilization
The Hittites, in Anatolia, are the first people to work iron - introducing what is later called the Iron Age
The clepsydra, or water clock, is developed in Egypt
Iron reheated with carbon is found to be much harder, being transformed into steel
The technique of glazing pottery is discovered in Mesopotamia, though used at this stage only for decorative arts arts purposes
The Assyrian army makes good use of the new technology by which iron can be hardened into steel suitable for weapons
The earliest surviving sundial is in use in Egypt
The Persian emperor Darius I constructs a canal linking the Nile to the Red Sea
The Chinese become the first people to cast iron, after developing a furnace which can reach a very high temperature
The great network of roads built by Darius I has at its centre the 2000-mile royal road from Susa to Sardis
