Mechanics of pre-industrial technology : an introduction to the mechanics of ancient and traditional material culture
This is a general account of the mechanics behind pre-industrial technology. By combining the skills of an engineer and an archaeologist, it shows how mechanics can be used to create a better understanding of the function of artifacts and the achievements of early technology. The authors examine technology from the earliest stone tools of more than two million years ago to the erection of the statues of Easter Island which continued into the seventeenth century. Representative material cultures from most areas of the world have been selected for this study and the book shows how sophisticated many of their apparently simple techniques and artefacts actually were
Print Book, English, 1990
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge [England], 1990
xv, 325 pages : illustrations ; 26 cm
9780521341943, 9780521428712, 0521341949, 0521428718
18520966
Basic mechanics
Fluids and solids
Machines
Structures
Stone tools
Projectiles
Land transport
Water transport
Musical instruments