A study published in the journal Royal Society Open Science may have resolved one of history's greatest enigmas: the true origin of the wheel. Historian Richard Bulliet from Columbia University, in collaboration with engineers from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Georgia Tech, proposes that Neolithic miners extracting copper from the Carpathian Mountains in Eastern Europe invented the wheel around 3900 B.C. This groundbreaking research challenges traditional beliefs about the wheel's origins and suggests that its invention was an evolutionary process driven by environmental challenges rather than a singular event.
Richard Bulliet's research explores the engineering ingenuity of prehistoric Carpathian societies, focusing on the challenges faced by copper miners that may have driven advancements in wheel technology. The miners needed an efficient means to transport heavy loads of copper ore through narrow, winding mine tunnels. The study posits that the wheel evolved from simple cylindrical rollers used to reduce friction when moving heavy objects. Given the confined spaces of the mines, the traditional use of free rollers became impractical, as they required placement along the entire path and constant repositioning.
The Independent, Die Zeit, and Live Science were among the news websites to report on the study.
To overcome this, the miners innovated by adding grooves to the rollers, allowing the cargo to rest securely and move more efficiently. This adaptation, known as unilateral rolling, represented a significant breakthrough. The team’s simulations revealed that grooves in the rollers helped further reduce friction, which was crucial in the mining environment. Over time, these grooves deepened and merged into a central channel, giving rise to the first fixed-axle wheel design, known as a wheelset.
The researchers employed computational mechanics and design science to analyze how a set of simple rollers evolved into a wheel-and-axle system. They simulated the elastic response and stress distribution of structures from ancient wheels, enabling them to model a plausible sequence of innovations that led to the development of the wheel. This computational design approach allowed them to connect ancient engineering decisions with practical advantages in an unprecedented way.
Kai James, one of the engineers involved in the study, explained the influence of the mining environment on the wheel's development. "The environment where the original wheel developers were operating contained certain unique features that encouraged a shift toward roller-based transport," he said. "Essentially, these environmental features—e.g., a narrow, enclosed path—pushed the wheel's developers toward that particular design."
The study emphasizes that the wheel did not arise from an isolated invention but as a gradual innovation, influenced by environmental challenges and economic needs. Incremental changes built on each other until a radically new design emerged, reflecting a nuanced view of technological development that emphasizes trial, adaptation, and the influence of the environment over sudden invention.
Archaeological findings support this theory. Over 150 clay models of four-wheeled wagons, likely used as drinking mugs, have been discovered in settlements of the Boleráz culture in Central Europe, carbon-dated to around 3600 B.C. These artifacts resemble small wheeled baskets used to transport ore in the trenches or tunnels of copper mines, reflecting the artisans' design influences.
The researchers note that the narrow and confined paths of the mining tunnels made the rolling motion of simple rollers impractical for transporting heavy ore, pushing towards the adoption of a more functional transport system, such as wheelsets rather than independently turning wheels. This design was functional for moving heavy loads over relatively straight paths, suitable for the mining environment.
"Our findings demonstrate the critical role that environmental factors played in the creation of wheel technology," Bulliet added. The study introduces an original computational design algorithm that autonomously generates a wheel-and-axle system using an evolutionary process, starting with a basic cylinder and refining the design based on mechanical performance. This algorithm offers insight into the way in which the first wheels probably evolved nearly 6,000 years ago, allowing scientists to simulate how a simple device like a roller could incrementally transform into a complex wheel-and-axle system.
The research team suggests that similar methodologies could help unravel other technological mysteries of prehistory. "For example, I think there is still much to learn about exactly how the pyramids were constructed," Kai James said. "Computational mechanical design could be instrumental in answering some of those questions."
This new perspective challenges traditional theories that point to Mesopotamia or northern Turkey as the origin of the wheel. While it's still possible that multiple civilizations independently discovered the wheel on their own, the evidence from the Carpathian mines aligns with the evolution of early wheeled technology. The artifacts, computational models, and historical context suggest that ancient copper miners, faced with the challenges of transporting heavy ore through narrow tunnels, played a pivotal role in the creation of the first wheels. Their innovations spread, reshaping human society far beyond the confines of the mines.
The wheel is one of humanity's most important inventions and is often hailed as one of the most transformative moments in human history, revolutionizing transportation, pottery making, and human development. Despite its significance, scholars have struggled to pinpoint where, when, and how the wheel first emerged, with no consensus on its original creation or the identity of its inventor.
This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq