The Wheel

Bulliet's most interesting finding is that a simple desire to move things from place to place did not drive the wheel's development. If that were the case, the wheel could have been invented at any time almost anywhere in the world. By dividing the history of this technology into three conceptual phases and focusing on the specific men, women, and societies that brought it about, Bulliet expands the social, economic, and political significance of a tool we only partially understand. He underscores the role of gender, combat, and competition in the design and manufacture of wheels, adding vivid imagery to illustrate each stage of their development.

List of contents

Acknowledgments
1. Wheel Versus Wheel
2. Why Invent the Wheel?
3. A Square Peg in a Round Wheel
4. Home on the Range
5. Wheels for Show
6. The Rise and Demise of the Charioteer
7. The Princess Ride
8. The Carriage Revolution
9. Four Wheels in China
10. Rickshaw Cities
11. The Third Wheel
Notes
Glossary
Further Reading
Index

About the author

Richard W. Bulliet taught Middle Eastern history and the history of technology at Columbia University from 1976 to 2015. He is the author of Cotton, Climate, and Camels in Early Islamic Iran: A Moment in World History; Hunters, Herders, and Hamburgers: The Past and Future of Human-Animal Relationships; The Case for Islamo-Christian Civilization; Islam: The View from the Edge; and The Camel and the Wheel.

Summary

A visually rich, analytical history of the key cycles in a revolutionary technology.

Report

"This is a wonderful book, brimming at once with fascinating tales and with fundamental insights into the nature of invention." Patrick Manning, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of World History, University of Pittsburgh

Product details

• Authors: Richard Bulliet, Richard W. Bulliet
• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 31.01.2016
• EAN: 9780231173384
• ISBN: 978-0-231-17338-4
• No. of pages: 272
• Dimensions: 162 mm x 212 mm x 20 mm
• Series: Columbia Studies in International and Global History; Columbia Studies in Internatio; Columbia Studies in International and Global History
• Subjects: Education and learning > Teaching preparation > Vocational needs; Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Technology > General, dictionaries; TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING / Inventions, SCIENCE / Philosophy & Social Aspects, TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING / Social Aspects, Impact of science & technology on society, Impact of science and technology on society, Inventions & inventors, Inventions and inventors, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Technology Studies, inventions; world history; engineering