Hinge and door pivot
Bisagra y quicio de puerta
- Date
- c. 2500 BCE · confidence low
- Place
- Ur, Iraq and Egypt
- Credited to
- Sumerians and Egyptians
- Field
- Tools
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
Stone pivots and later bronze hinges that allow heavy wooden or metal doors to swing. Bronze Age boxes, chests and temple doors used them together with lost-wax cast pieces.
The riveted two-leaf metal hinge is clearly documented in New Kingdom Egypt (c. 1500 BCE); the stone pivot is much earlier.
What it led to
- Monumental doors for temples and city walls that could be closed and secured
- Lockable chests and furniture, the basis of private domestic life
- Articulation mechanics applied to carts, armour and machines
Built on
- Lost-wax castingc. 3700 BCE
- Metal nail and rivetc. 3000 BCE
- Neolithic stone door-pivot
Made possible
- Pin tumbler lock and keyc. 2000 BCE
- Stern-post (axial) rudderc. 100 CE
- Armoured city gate
- Lidded chest