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 Evolution of Hand Tools
The story of the evolution of hand tools was not one of continual development as there are periods when progress was slow or even went backwards. The first sign of use of hand tools came in the stone age. There is evidence of Romans making and using tools and some tools of the Roman age are still used today. Machine tools occasioned a rise in producing new hand tools in the industrial revolution of eighteenth century.
During the Victorian period, a craftsman's hand tools were his main source of earning. Specialist crafts and hand tools were developed period after period to turn wood and metal into useful things. Carpenters, sawyers, carvers, joiners etc. have all used the different types of hand tools in their operation. Every stage of the manufacturing process had its special tool, from hammers, saws and axes to chisels and gouges.
Hand tools were by craftsmen in manual operations, like chopping, sawing, chiseling, forging, filing since a long time. Some tools were found in northern Kenya in 1969 and after research, it was found that they were about 2,600,000 years old. |
