There is a reason haymaking dominated the rural year to the extent it did, and it is not simply that animals needed feeding.
The requirement was absolute. Livestock kept through…
One fire, one anvil, and everything metal for a mile. Here are twelve.
1. The Fire Was Not Hot Because It Was Big
A forge fire is small and concentrated,…
Source: Wikipedia
Heavy, loud and operated by exactly one person. Here are twelve.
1. The Weight of It
Source: Wikipedia
Cast iron and steel in a case with a handle, carried with…
Almost everything that makes a chair comfortable or unbearable was decided by a handful of measurements, and they interact. Here are fifteen.
1. Seat Height Decides Everything Else
The distance…
There is a category of object assembled entirely without fixings, and basketry is the oldest and most widespread example.
Almost everything else made of many parts is held together by…
There is a container that solves several problems at once, which is why it lasted for two thousand years and why nothing replaced it until very recently.
The problems are…