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| First ice skates 5000 years old |
| 2007-12-25 |
| Ice skating is enjoying a revival as a family day out - but 5,000 years ago it was invented as a means of survival, say scientists. Archaeological evidence suggests the first skates were made of animal bones in around 3000 BC to aid travel during the frozen winters in Finland. Scientists who made the discovery say it means that ice skating is the oldest form of human-powered transport. Constructed of trimmed horse or cow bones, and pierced at one end and strapped to the foot with leather thongs, the first skates were not powered by the classic motion known today. Instead they were used in tandem with a long stick which skaters straddled and used to propel themselves along. In the Biological Journal of the Linnean Society of London, Dr Frederico Formenti and Professor Alberto Minetti of Oxford University lay out the evidence supporting the theory that the birth of ice skating took place in southern Finland, where the number of lakes within a given area is the highest in the world. "In central and northern Europe, 5,000 years ago people struggled to survive the severe winter conditions and it seems unlikely that ice skating developed as a hobby," said Dr Formenti. "As happened later for skis and bicycles, I am convinced that we first made ice skates in order to limit the energy required for our daily journeys." In experiments on an ice rink by the Alps, the team showed that the use of bone skates on frozen lakes would have reduced the amount of energy required to get about by 10%. |
| Posted by:lotp |
| #2 Fascinating, Matti! And welcome to Rantburg. I look forward to your perspective on things. :-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-12-25 23:42 |
| #1 Skiing wasn't a hobby as well. Travelling on the surface of feet deep snow was important when tracing and hunting animals. The snow doesn't carry animal and so it becames slower, but the hunter becames faster. The skiing stick was also a long spear-type weapon capable to kill an elk or a bear. Low-energy veggie food wasn't popular in those days. |
| Posted by: Matti Kaariainen 2007-12-25 06:31 |