Handbarrow
The handbarrow, also spelled hand-barrow and hand barrow, is a type of human-powered transport. It was originally a flat, rectangular frame used to carry loads such as salt cod, cheese and guano.[1][2] It has handles on both ends, so two people are needed to use it.[3][4] In Dutch cheese markets, official porters (kaasdragers) still use traditional barrows, albeit with straps, to transport cheese. A special handbarrow was built to move the Stone of Destiny around Westminster Abbey.[5] Modern usage has expanded the definition to include the wheelbarrow or any wheeled cart or box propelled by hand.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/Alkmaar%2C_cheese_market-1.jpg/220px-Alkmaar%2C_cheese_market-1.jpg)
Scholars such as Lynn Townsend White Jr., Albert Leighton and Andrea Matthies suggest it may have inspired the invention of the wheelbarrow.[6] The addition of a wheel meant it only required one person. (Leonardo da Vinci is sometimes credited as the inventor, but a crude form of the wheelbarrow was in use in England in the early 14th century, predating da Vinci by a century.[4])
The Middle English word barwe means handbarrow, litter or stretcher,[7] the last two being similar in construction to the handbarrow, only with the "cargo" being a person.
References
[edit]- ^ "Hand Barrow - La cheviéthe à bras". British Museum / BBC.
- ^ "Hand Barrow". Artefacts Canada.
- ^ "barrow (n.1)". Online Etymology Dictionary.
- ^ a b Amelia, William (September 28, 2002). "For years, bearing burdens". The Baltimore Sun.
- ^ "20 facts revealed about the Stone of Destiny". Historic Environment Scotland. November 29, 2016.
- ^ Lewis, M. J. T. (1994). "The Origins of the Wheelbarrow". Technology and Culture. 35 (3): 453–475. doi:10.2307/3106255. JSTOR 3106255.
- ^ "Middle English Compendium: barwe n." University of Michigan.