The
timeline of historic inventions is a
chronological list of particularly important or significant
technological
inventions.
Note: Dates for inventions are often controversial.
Inventions are often invented by several inventors around the same
time, or may be invented in an impractical form many years before
another inventor improves the invention into a more practical form.
Where there is ambiguity, the date of the first known working
version of the invention is used here.
Paleolithic era
Antiquity
10th millennium BCE
9th millennium BCE
8th millennium BCE
7th millennium BCE
6th millennium BCE
5th millennium BCE
4th millennium BCE
3rd millennium BCE
- 2800 BCE: Soap in Mesopotamia
- 2800
BCE: Button in the Indus Valley Civilization
(India
/Pakistan
)
- 2800 BCE: Bathroom in the Indus Valley Civilization
- 2800
BCE: Toilet in Mohenjo-daro
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2700 BCE: Plumbing in the Indus Valley Civilization
- 2700 BCE: Sanitary sewer in the
Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2700 BCE: Sewage
collection and disposal in the Indus Valley Civilization
- 2630-2611 BCE: Step
pyramid: Imhotep in Egypt

- 2600s
BCE: Papyrus: Imhotep
in Egypt

- 2600s
BCE: Suture: Imhotep in Egypt

- 2600s
BCE: Pharmaceutical cream:
Imhotep in Egypt

- 2600
BCE: Bangle in Mohenjo-daro
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2600 BCE: Chariot in Mesopotamia
- 2600 BCE: Urban planning in the
Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2500s
BCE: Stepwell in Mohenjo-daro
, Indus Valley
CivilizationLivingston & Beach, 20
- 2500
BCE: Arch in Mohenjo-daro
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2500 BCE: Animal-drawn plough in the
Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2500 BCE: Puppet in the Indus Valley CivilizationGhosh,
Massey, and Banerjee, page 14
- 2500-1900 BCE: Furnace in Balakot
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2500-900 BCE: Oven in
Balakot
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2400
BCE: Shipyard in Lothal
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2400
BCE: Dock in Lothal
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2400
BCE: Ruler in Lothal
, Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2000 BCE: Cockfighting in the
Indus Valley
Civilization
- 2000 BCE: Currency
- Dice in the Indus Valley Civilization
- Dye in Mohenjo-daro
, Indus Valley
CivilizationBhardwaj, H.C. & Jain, K.K., "Indian Dyes and
Industry During 18th-19th Century", Indian Journal of History
of Science, '17 (11): 70-81, New Delhi
: Indian
National Science Academy.
- Public bath in
Mohenjo-daro
, Indus Valley
CivilizationKeay, John (2001), India: A History,
13-14, Grove Press, ISBN 0802137970.
- Aqueduct in ancient Egypt and Indus Valley Civilization
- Candle in Egypt

- Dagger in Near
East
- Sickle-sword in Sumer
- Alphabet in Phoenicia

- Ink in China

- Sledges in Scandinavia
- Ski in Scandinavia
- Noodle in China

2nd millennium BCE
1st millennium BCE
1st millennium CE
1st-5th centuries
6th-8th centuries
9th-10th centuries
- 700-1000: Spinning wheel in
India
- 800-850: Mural instrument:
Muhammad ibn
Mūsā al-Khwārizmī
- 800-850: Sine quadrant:
Muhammad ibn
Mūsā al-Khwārizmī
- 800-850: Horary quadrant:
Muhammad ibn
Mūsā al-Khwārizmī
- 800-857: Under-arm deodorant: Ziryab
- 800-857: Beauty parlour: Ziryab
- 800-857: Chemical
depilatory: Ziryab
- 800-873: Automatic flute player: Banū
Mūsā
- 800-873: Programmable
machine: Banū Mūsā
- 800-873: Trick drinking vessels: Banū Mūsā
- 800-873: Gas mask: Banū Mūsā
- 800-873: Clamshell grab: Banū Mūsā
- 800-873: Fail-safe system: Banū Mūsā
- 800-873: Mechanical musical
instrument: Banū
Mūsā
- 800-873: Hurricane lamp: Banū Mūsā
- 800-873: Self-feeding oil lamp:
Banū Mūsā
- 800-873: Self-trimming oil lamp:
Ahmad ibn Mūsā
ibn Shākir
- 800s: Muslin in
Dhaka
, Bengal
- 800s: Stonepaste
ceramics in Iraq

- 800s: Black powder in China
- 800s: Water turbine in the
Arab Empire
- 800s: Universal sundial in Baghdad

- 800s: Universal horary dial in Baghdad

- 800s: Vertical-axle windmill in Afghanistan
Ahmad Y Hassan,
Donald Routledge Hill (1986).
Islamic Technology: An illustrated history, p. 54.
Cambridge University
Press. ISBN 0-521-42239-6.
- 800s: Naphtha in
Azerbaijan

- 800s: Oil well in
Azerbaijan

- 800s: College: Madrasah in the Muslim
world
- 800-1000: Wind
powered gristmills in Afghanistan
, Pakistan
and Iran
Adam Lucas
(2006), Wind, Water, Work: Ancient and Medieval Milling
Technology, p. 65. BRILL, ISBN 9004146490.
- 800-1000: Sugar
refinery in Afghanistan
, Pakistan
and Iran
- 800-1000: Metal
block printing in Egypt

- c. 800-1000: Switch: Arabic engineers
- 801-1000: Municipal solid
waste handling: Al-Kindi, Qusta ibn Luqa, Muhammad ibn Zakarīya
Rāzi, Ibn Al-Jazzar, al-Masihi
- 810-887: Glass from
stone: Abbas Ibn Firnas in al-Andalus
Lynn Townsend
White, Jr. (Spring, 1961). "Eilmer of Malmesbury, an Eleventh
Century Aviator: A Case Study of Technological Innovation, Its
Context and Tradition", Technology and Culture
2 (2): 97-111 [100]
- 810-887: Clear colourless high-purity glass: Abbas Ibn
Firnas
- 810-887: Metronome: Abbas Ibn Firnas
- 810-887: Artificial weather
simulation: Abbas Ibn Firnas
- 827: Mechanical singing bird automaton: Al-Ma'mun
- 836-1000: Erectile
dysfunction treatment: Muhammad ibn Zakarīya
Rāzi, Thabit bin Qurra
(Thebit), Ibn Al-Jazzar
- 853-929: Observation tube:
Muhammad ibn Jābir al-Harrānī al-Battānī (Albatenius)
- 852:
Parachute: Abbas Ibn Firnas in al-Andalus

- 859: University: Fatima al-Fihri
- 875: Hang glider: Abbas Ibn Firnas
- 875: Artificial wing: Abbas Ibn Firnas
- 875: Flight control
frame: Abbas Ibn Firnas
- c. 865-900: Kerosene:
Muhammad ibn
Zakarīya Rāzi (Rhazes) in Iraq

- 865-925: Chemotherapy: Muhammad ibn Zakarīya
Rāzi
- 900s: Banknote in
China

- 900s: Fire lance
in China

- 900s: Gun in China

- 900s: Milling factory in
Baghdad
Donald Routledge
Hill (1996), "Engineering", p. 783, in
- 900s: Graph paper in the Arab Empire
- 900s: Horizontal-axle windmill in Afghanistan
, Pakistan
and Iran
- 904:
Fire Arrow in China

- 919:
Double-piston flamethrower in China

- 984: Pound lock: Qiao Weiyo
- 953: Fountain pen: Al-Muizz Lideenillah of Egypt
- 960-1000: Restaurant in the Arab Empire
- 994:
Astronomical sextant:
Abu-Mahmud al-Khujandi in
Persia

- 996: Geared mechanical astrolabe: Abū Rayhān
al-Bīrūnī
- Almucantar quadrant: Arabic astronomers
- Navigational astrolabe:
Arabic astronomers
- Vertical sundial: Arabic astronomers , in
- Polar sundial: Arabic astronomers
- Shaving soap: Arabic chemists
- Reed level: Arabic engineers
- Geared gristmill:
Arabic
engineers
- Shatranj in Persia
- Street lamp in the Arab Empire
- Sherbet in the Arab Empire
- Soft drink in the Arab Empire The World's First Soft Drink. 1001 Inventions,
2006.
- Syrup in the Arab
Empire
- Mercury escapement mechanism in the Middle East
- Public library in the Arab Empire
- Lending library in the Arab Empire
- Library catalog in the Arab Empire
- Firecracker in
China

- Snakes and
ladders in India

2nd millennium
11th century
12th century
13th century
- c. 1200: Glass mirror in Europe
- 1206: Bolted joint lock
- 1206: Flow control
regulator: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Elephant clock: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Hand washing device: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Kitchen appliance: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Camshaft: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Segmental gear: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Reciprocating, double-action suction piston pump:
Al-Jazari
- 1206: Humanoid robot: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Programmable robot: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Programmable analog computer: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Automatic gate: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Laminate: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Mechanical template: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Paper model: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Calibration: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Sand casting: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Emery powder: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Crankshaft-driven chain pump: Al-JazariDonald
Routledge Hill, "Engineering", in Roshdi Rashed, ed.,
Encyclopedia of
the History of Arabic Science, Vol. 2, p. 751-795 [776].
Routledge, London and New York.
- 1206: Hydropowered saqiya chain pump: Al-Jazari
- 1206: Intermittent working:
Al-Jazari
- 1232: Rocket
launcher in China

- 1235: Geared astrolabe with analog
computer calendar: Abi Bakr of Isfahan

- 1259: Research institute:
Nasīr al-Dīn
al-Tūsī
- 1259: Observatory institution:
Nasīr al-Dīn
al-Tūsī
- 1260: Hand
cannon in Egypt

- 1260: Explosive
gunpowder in Egypt

- 1260: Cartridge in Egypt

- 1270: Pure saltpetre: Hasan al-Rammah of Syria

- 1274: Siege cannon: Abu Yaqub
Yusuf
- 1275: Torpedo:
Hasan al-Rammah of Syria

- 1275: Restaurant menu
in China

- 1277: Land mine:
Lou Qianxia in China

- c. 1296: Astronomical compass: Yemeni
sultan al-Ashraf
- 1297-1298: Wooden movable type printing: Wang Zhen of China

- Crankshaft-driven screw: Arabic engineersDonald Routledge Hill (1996),
"Engineering", p. 771, in
- Crankshaft-driven screwpump: Arabic engineers
- Sandpaper in
China

- Solid-fuel rocket in China
- Condom in Italy
- Buttonhole in
Germany

- Snakes and ladders in
India
14th century
15th century
16th century
17th century
18th century
19th century
1800s
1810s
1820s
1830s
1840s
1850s
1860s
1870s
1880s
1890s
20th century
1900s
1910s
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
Digital audio:
Denon
1980s
1990s
3rd millennium
21st century
2000s
Notes
See also
References
- Alter, J. S. in "Kabaddi, a national sport of India". Dyck,
Noel (2000). Games, Sports and Cultures. Berg Publishers:
ISBN 1859733174.
- Asimov, Isaac, "Asimov's Chronology
of Science and Discovery", Harper & Row, 1989. ISBN
0-06-015612-0
- Bedini, Silvio A. (1994). The
Trail of Time : Time Measurement with Incense in East Asia.
England: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521374820.
- Chamberlin, J. Edward (2007). Horse: How the Horse Has
Shaped Civilizations. Moscow
: Olma Media Group. ISBN 1904955363.
- Davreu, Robert (1978). "Cities of Mystery: The Lost Empire of
the Indus Valley". The World’s Last Mysteries. (second
edition). Sydney: Readers’ Digest. ISBN 0909486611
- De Bono, Edward, "Eureka! An
Illustrated History of Inventions from the Wheel to the Computer",
Thames & Hudson, 1974.
- Finger, Stanley (2001). Origins of Neuroscience: A History
of Explorations Into Brain Function. England: Oxford
University Press. ISBN 0195146948.
- Ghosh, Amalananda (1990). An Encyclopaedia of Indian
Archaeology. Brill. ISBN 9004092641.
- Ghosh, S.; Massey, Reginald; and Banerjee, Utpal Kumar (2006).
Indian Puppets: Past, Present and Future. Abhinav
Publications. ISBN 817017435X.
- Gowlett, John, "Ascent to Civilization", McGraw-Hill, Inc.,
1992. ISBN 0-07-544312-0
- Juleff, G. (1996). An ancient wind powered iron smelting
technology in Sri Lanka. Nature 379 (3):
60–63.
- Koppel, Tom (2007). Ebb and Flow: Tides and Life on Our
Once and Future Planet. Dundurn Press Ltd. ISBN
1550027263.
- Livingston, Morna & Beach, Milo (2002). Steps to Water:
The Ancient Stepwells of India. Princeton Architectural Press.
ISBN 1568983247.
- Platt, Richard, "Eureka!: Great Inventions and How They
Happened", 2003.
- Pruthi, Raj (2004). Prehistory and Harappan
Civilization. New Delhi: APH Publishing Corp. ISBN
8176485810.
- Schafer, Edward H. (1963).
The Golden Peaches of Samarkand: A Study of T'ang Exotics.
California: University of California Press. ISBN 0520054628.
- Srinivasan, S. & Ranganathan, S. Wootz Steel: An Advanced Material of the Ancient
World. Bangalore: Indian Institute of Science.
- Thrusfield, Michael (2007). Veterinary Epidemiology.
Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 1405156279.
- Whitelaw, Ian (2007). A Measure of All Things: The Story of
Man and Measurement. Macmillan. ISBN 0312370261.
External links